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Ice Sculpture Honors Teen Climate Activist, Laments Global Warming
October 1, 2019
Greta is melting, and it's a symbol of global warming. That's the message behind a new sculpture of famed Swedish teen climate activist Greta Thunberg. The sculpture, a likeness of Thunberg, was made of ice and was standing in Trafalgar Square in London. The artists–C.J. Brown, Chris Godfrey, and Alissa Khan-Whelan–designed the sculpture to last one day, melting all the while, as a way to not only highlight the global warming that Earth is undergoing but also highlighting Thunberg's role in calling people's attention to the dangers of that global warming.
7.6 Million Join Climatestrikes Worldwide
September 28, 2019
Another round of ClimateStrike protests filled the streets of cities around the world. Estimates worldwide for the marches and rallies to protest inaction on climate change were of fewer participants than the week before, but some cities reported higher numbers the second time around. The total number of people who took part in events on both Fridays is estimated at 7.6 million. In Montreal, Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg joined 500,000 protesters in Montreal in one of several hundred ClimateStrikes around the world. Thunberg later met privately with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who had been part of the Montreal march. Trudeau, joining 66 other countries, recently committed his country to reaching carbon neutrality by 2050.
Coming-of-age Party, Famine Feature in Pompeii Inscription
September 29, 2019
A newly deciphered message found on the wall of a tomb in the ruins of Pompeii reveals more details about life in the Roman city destroyed by Mount Vesuvius. Archaeologists found the inscription in 2017 but have only now been able to read it fully and understand it. Officials say that it is the longest funerary epigraph ever found. Among the topics discussed: A wealthy young man threw himself a coming-of-age party that lasted several days and featured food and drink for nearly 7,000 people and more than 400 gladiators fighting against one another and against large beasts as part of the entertainment.
Olympic Athletes to Sleep on Cardboard Beds
September 29, 2019
Competitors at the 2020 Olympics will sleep in beds made out of cardboard, organizers of the Tokyo Games said. Airweave, a Japanese bed company, is making 26,000 beds (18,000 for the Games and 8,000 for the Paralympic Games) out of what the company is calling "high resistance lightweight cardboard." Mattresses will be polyethylene. The use of cardboard is in keeping with the Games' theme of sustainability, organizers said. Completing the cycle, organizers will convert the cardboard bed frames into paper products and the mattress parts into plastic for other items.
U.K. High Court Voids Parliament Dismissal
September 24, 2019
Parliament will be back in session, after the United Kingdom's highest court voided a decision to dismiss Parliament. The U.K. Supreme Court handed down a decision agreed on by all 11 of its justices that declared constitutional illegal the advice that Prime Minister Boris Johnson gave to Queen Elizabeth II regarding the dismissal of Parliament, known as a prorogue. Scotland's high court had made the same declaration a few weeks before. Johnson, recently named Prime Minister, has made no secret of supporting Brexit, the departure of the U.K. from the European Union; he has also dismissed any concerns with such a departure occurring without any sort of agreements with EU nations or any other countries in place at the time of the departure. Just before the prorogue began, Parliament approved a bill that would block a no-deal Brexit and would compel the Prime Minister to seek another extension of the Brexit deadline. The EU has already granted one extension, and its leaders have repeatedly vowed not to grant another one.
Climate Action Summit: Some Small Promises
September 24, 2019
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres convened the Climate Action Summit at U.N. headquarters in New York, a day ahead of the 74th General Assembly. Most world leaders were in attendance, and many spoke at the climate summit, including famed teen activist Greta Thunberg, who gave an impassioned speech imploring the adults in the room to live up to their responsibilities.
Runoff Ahead for 2 in Tunisian Presidential Election
September 24, 2019
The next President of Tunisia is yet to be known, after ballot-counting in the country's presidential election found no clear winner. The top two vote-getters will go to a runoff election. A total of 26 candidates were on the ballot to replace President Beji Caid Essebsi, who died recently. The two candidates with the most votes were Kais Saied, a relatively unknown lawyer, and television magnate Nabil Karoui.
Million-dollar Painting Found Hanging in French Kitchen
September 24, 2019
A painting hanging above an electrical appliance in a French kitchen was done by a famous Renaissance artist and could be worth more than $6 million. The 8-inch-by-11-inch painting is Christ Mocked, part of a series of eight scenes from the last days of Jesus. The artist was Cimabue, who some art historians revere as influential in the development of Western painting.
4 Million Take Part in Climatestrikes Worldwide
September 21, 2019
In a larger version of events that have taken place with regularity during the last year, millions of people around the world took part in a ClimateStrike, a protest against inaction on climate change. As before, as the day dawned in the eastern Pacific, people gathered in cities far and wide (notably in nations like Kiribati and Vanuatu whose very existence is threatened by rising sea levels), marching and chanting and waving placards containing slogans like "There Is No Planet B." It wasn't just students, either. Many, many adults joined in the protests and rallies in more than 150 countries. Organizers estimated the worldwide turnout at 4 million.
700 Youths at U.N. Climate Summit
September 21, 2019
Swedish teen Greta Thunberg was probably the most well-known young person to attend the first-ever United Nations Youth Climate Summit, but she was by no means the only one. More than 700 youths from across the world attended the one-day session, punctuated by a meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Thunberg spoke briefly on Saturday but preferred to let others get a chance to address the U.N. The teens who spoke didn't hold back. Bruno Rodriguez of Argentina called for countries to remove themselves from entanglements with big corporations that specialize in fossil fuel production. Komal Karisham Kumar of Fiji warned that if world leaders didn't live up to the promises that they made in signing the Paris Climate Agreement, they would face the consequences at the ballot box. Guterres, who has championed action to combat climate change, welcomed such strong messages.
2020 Olympics Organizers Try Fake Snow to Beat the Heat
September 21, 2019
Officials have added a new element to the keep-everyone-cool effort already under way for the 2020 Olympics: snow cannons. The Games are in Tokyo, which traditionally experiences very hot temperatures in July. The average temperature for the past decade on the day the Games open, July 24, is 87.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Add that to the city's propensity for high summer humidity, and it has organizers concerned. Organizers already have at their disposal a number of contingencies, mist towers and hydration stations among them. Stadiums have been designed to keep cool air in the stands and on the track and field. Eager to add another weapon against the heat, organizers tested an artificial snow machine by showering a seated crowd with fake snow. The test was done at the Sea Forest Waterway, where many canoe and kayaking events will take place. The result was no significant change in the temperature inside the venue. Whether further tests take place remains to be seen.
Teen Climate Activist Joins White House Rally
September 14, 2019
Famed Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg has brought her environmental activism to the U.S. After spending about two weeks in minimal comfort aboard a solar-powered yacht, she made landfall and made her way to Washington, D.C., and to the White House, where she joined a group of 
students protesting inaction over climate change. Thunberg, who made a name for herself by turning a one-person school-absenteeism-as-protest stunt into a global movement, joined in the chants at the rally. She spoke, calling for ready action, not waiting to see what happens. Thunberg plans to testify before Congress and to join a protest outside the U.S. Supreme Court building. (The Court might eventually consider a case in which a group of students are suing the federal government over its climate change inaction.) She will also attend the United Nations Climate Action Summit, which is September 23 in New York. That summit will take place inside a global weeklong Climate Strike, which begins Sept. 20.
Tunisians Vote in Presidential Election
September 15, 2019
For the second time ever, Tunisians voted to elect a president in a free and clear election. The North African country was one of a number to take part in the 2011 uprisings referred to many as the Arab Spring. A total of 26 candidates were on the ballot to replace Beji Caid Essebsi, who was elected president in 2014 with a large turnout of voters eager to exercise that kind of power for the first time. Essebsi, at 92 the oldest leader of a country in the world, died in July. Turnout was expected to be about 35 percent, elections officials said; that figure would be significantly lower than that recorded in 2014. Observers said that no candidate had emerged as a clear front-runner and that a runoff between top vote-getters was expected.
3-year-old's Lemonade Stand Nets $754 for K9 Unit
September 14, 2019
Lainie Stephens has learned the power of economics and of social media, all in one exercise and all before the age of 4. Lainie, who is 3, lives in Germantown, Wis. Her mother, Molly, was having a yard sale that was slated to last three days. Seeking to keep her daughter busy, she suggested that Lainie set up a lemonade stand and implore the people walking by to buy. Lainie came up with the idea of donating her proceeds to the city police department's K9 Unit, which receives all of its funding from the community. A Facebook post led to a sharp increase in customers. Lainie was also selling dog food, which she and her grandmother, Sue Moroski, poured into individual plastic bags for sale. She sold several dozen bags of that and nearly 100 cups of lemonade. At the end of the yard sale, Lainie had earned $754. Some people who saw the photo on social media donated more than $50 each.
Study Traces Fate of Ancient Continent Now Underneath Europe
September 11, 2019
Scientists have recreated what happened to a large continent that is now underneath southern Europe. Greater Adria, as it is known, broke off some 240 million years ago from Gondwanaland, a very large landmass that contained what is now Africa, Antarctica, Australia, South America, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Indian subcontinent. At the time, Greater Adria stretched from what is now Spain to what is now Iran but, because most of it was underwater, was more likely to have been a number of islands or archipelagos than a continuous landmass–above water, anyway. The lands were closer together in those days, but Greater Adria was still large, the size of Greenland today.
Notre Dame Cleanup Resumes Amid Fears of Lead Exposure
September 8, 2019
Cleanup work has resumed at Notre Dame Cathedral, the 850-year-old landmark that was damaged by fire earlier this year. Crews fanned out in and around the cathedral and in the streets surrounding the landmark, scrubbing the pavement and rinsing the ground with chemicals, to ensure that it is safe for pedestrian traffic once again. A French environmental protection group estimated that the fire had churned through 440 tons of lead that was in the roof and the spire. Fumes and other residue from that high amount of lead could still cause health risks, the group said. Cleanup crews were wearing haz-mat suits and taking decontamination showers, but pedestrians could still get very close to the plaza, certainly within range of any contaminants still being expelled. Paris city officials had in June done testing in surrounding neighborhoods for lead contamination and had found no cause for concern; subsequent testing in August had found unacceptable levels of lead particles in the air at two nearby schools, forcing authorities to close the schools. School was not in session.
DNA Links Indus River Valley Civilization to People Today
September 8, 2019
For the first time, scientists have found DNA information from a person known to have lived in the ancient Indus Valley Civilization. The DNA came from a woman who died about 4,500 years ago was buried in a cemetery near what is now Rakhigarhi, in India, which is not far from the ancient Indus city of Harappa. The DNA showed markers also found in people who live in South Asia today. Further, the scientists said, the genes of the woman were different enough from other nearby cultures like the Fertile Crescent at a time that predates the introduction of agriculture in those regions, suggesting that the woman's civilization had developed farming on its own. This validates what archaeologists had already thought about the Indus River Valley civilization.
SAT Board Abandons 'Adversity Score'
August 27, 2019
The "adversity score" is no more. The College Board, the New York-based nonprofit that oversees the popular college entrance examination the Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT), has dropped the idea of adding a score to encapsulate a college or university applicant's economic hardship. David Coleman, CEO of the College Board, said that the information used to determine that score would still be available to admissions officials in the form of a tool called Landscape but that the all-encompassing total number would not. Widespread opposition from parents and university officials played a part in the decision, Coleman said.
Cherokee Nation Nominates Delegate to Serve in Congress
August 26, 2019
The Cherokee Nation will appoint a delegate to the House of Representatives, exercising a privilege set out in an 1835 treaty but not acted on until now. Kimberly Teehee, the tribe's vice-president of government relations, will be that delegate, pending approval by the full tribal council and by Congress. Teehee's experience in Washington, D.C., includes a stint as a senior policy adviser on Native American affairs to then-President Barack Obama. The 1835 Treaty of New Echota was devastating for the Cherokee, who were forced to leave their homes in the Southeast and travel hundreds of miles to what was then Indian Territory and is now Oklahoma on the Trail of Tears.
Iceland Memorial Commemorates Death of Glacier
August 20, 2019
It's not every day that people gather to farewell a glacier, but that's what a group of Icelanders did recently, to mourn the loss of a glacier that ended its life after 700 years. Okjokull is the name of the glacier, which was officially declared dead in 2014 and fought bravely on for another five years before becoming just a small bit of ice on top of a volcano near the capital, Reykjavik. Among the more than 100 children and adults attending the ceremony were Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir, and Environment Minister Gudmundur Ingi Gudbrandsson. Jakobsdottir addressed the crowd gathered for the ceremony, and then the mourners walked for two hours up to top of the volcano and laid a plaque that doubled as a time capsule in the form of a letter to future viewers.
Rare Dime Nets $1.32 Million at Auction
August 20, 2019
One of the rarest coins in the U.S. sold for $1.32 million recently. An 1894-S Barber Dime, one of only nine known to exist, sold at auction at the World Fair of Money in Chicago. The buyer was Dell Loy Hansen, a businessman whose holdings include the Major League Soccer team Real Salt Lake. The coin was so rare for a number of reasons, not least because only 24 were minted that year by the San Francisco Mint (which is why they're called S dimes).
High-tech Scans Find Ghost Image in Leonardo Painting
August 16, 2019
Scientists using cutting-edge technology have found a hidden image underneath a famous Leonardo painting. It's not some kind of code, though. Instead, it's the original composition. The painting is known as Madonna of the Rocks or The Virgin of the Rocks. Leonardo completed two versions of the painting. The earlier version, done in 1483–1486, hangs in the Louvre in Paris; the later version, done in 1495–1508, hangs in the National Gallery in London. Scientists examined the London version. The researchers used a trio of high-tech scanning techniques to reveal images not visible to the naked eye. The result is a ghostly prototype that, if completed, would have been a significant departure from the earlier version.
Teen Climate Activist Sets Sail on Solar-powered Yacht
August 14, 2019
It was bon voyage for Greta Thunberg, as the 16-year-old climate activist set sail across the Atlantic, on her way to a United Nations summit on a solar-powered yacht. Thunberg, who announced her mode of transport in July, said that she didn't have much sailing in her background but was willing to suffer through whatever seasickness she encountered in order to avoid flying in an airplane because of the carbon emissions generated by such a flight. She has taken a year off school in order to spread her message of climate action and has been traveling around Europe by train. Her journey, aboard the racing yacht Malizia II, is expected to take two weeks.
Track Greta's journey here.
Paris to Open World's Largest Rooftop Farm
August 13, 2019
It's a farm in the sky, almost. Workers in Paris are helping to create what will be the largest urban farm in Europe–on top of a six-story building in the heart of the city. It's part of a redevelopment of the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, and this part will be the world's largest rooftop farm, covering 150,695 square feet. Officials aim to employ 20 gardeners to help grow more than 30 different species of plant life and aim to produce more than 600 pounds of fruit and vegetables in the height of the growing season. In an effort to cut down on pollutants, arm officials will use aeroponic methods that make use of a closed water system and grow such fruits as vegetables in vertical containers, avoiding the use of soil. Plans are for the farm to open in spring 2020. Near the farm is to be a restaurant and bar that can seat 300 people, all of whom can view menus featuring seasonal produce grown onsite, using organic methods.
Underwater Veterans Memorial Opens
August 8, 2019
Statues of servicemen and servicewomen form an underwater memorial off the Florida coast, believed to be the first of its kind in the country. The 12 life-size concrete statues that make up the Circle of Heroes memorial honor veterans of the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard. They are on the ocean floor, about 40 feet down, in an area that is 100 miles from the shore of Clearwater. The statues stand in a circle, in the center of which is a 4-foot-high monument containing bronze emblems of the five branches of the military. Another 12 statues are to be added by Veteran's Day next year, officials said. A gathering of divers that included veterans who are amputees were the first to see the memorial after it opened. The ceremony featured a tribute to Vietnam Air Force veteran Dave Thomas, who built the center monument but died before the memorial opened.
Great Train Robbery's Mysterious 'Ulsterman' Identified (Again)
August 8, 2019
Law enforcement officials in the United Kingdom have identified one of the mystery men from the Great Train Robbery, a 1963 theft that netted £2.6 million for the gang of 17 who perpetrated the crime. Ronnie Biggs was perhaps the most well-known member of the gang, primarily for his escape from prison and for his life abroad during which he taunted the detectives who sought his recapture. Biggs and a dozen of the gang were caught, tried, convicted, to sentences ranging from three years to 30. A handful of the gang, however, were never caught and some were never identified. One of those mystery men was referred to repeatedly the rest of the gang only as "the Ulsterman." This man was thought to have been an insider who provided to the gang crucial information about Royal Mail train routes and routines; further, he was assumed to have absconded with his share of the stolen money.
4,000-year-old Yeast Flavors Modern Sourdough Bread
August 8, 2019
The bread isn't 4,000 years old, but the yeast used to make it is. Amateur Egyptologist Seamus Blackley parlayed his breadmaking hobby into an experiment using yeast kept safe in museums. He gained permission to access ceramic containers dating to Egypt's Old Kingdom period that were stored at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts and Harvard's Peabody Museum. Then, following the advice of microbiologist and friend Richard Bowman, Blackley noninvasively inserted nutrients into the containers, awakened some of the yeast, and then extracted the liquid that resulted. He sent most of what resulted off to labs for analysis but kept one sample for his bread-making.
Man on Hoverboard Crosses English Channel
August 4, 2019
A French inventor has crossed the English Channel on a jet-powered hoverboard. Making his second attempt, Franky Zapata achieved the feat in 22 minutes, flying the 22 miles from Sangatte, near Calais, France, to the United Kingdom, landing in Saint Margaret's Bay, close to Dover. He flew at speeds reaching 106 miles per hour. He stopped once during the trip, landing on a platform in the Channel to refuel. Powering the craft are five small jet engines, contained within a backpack. Zapata's refueling stop mid-flight required a change in backpack. A previous attempt at the cross-Channel flight in July stopped when Zapata missed the landing platform and fell into the sea. The new refueling platform was larger than the old one.
Lost Alexander the Great Sculpture Found during Museum Cleaning
August 4, 2019
Archaeologists in Greece have found an ancient sculpture of the renowned conqueror Alexander the Great in a storage room at a museum. The sculpture had been stuffed between cabinets in the warehouses of the Archaeological Museum in Vergina, a town in the northern part of the country. Archaeologists found the sculpture many years ago near the town and was presumably forgotten about. Staff cleaning the museum's storage rooms found the sculpture, which had been crammed between crates that contained pottery.
Saudi Women Allowed Travel Freedom
August 1, 2019
Women in Saudi Arabia have more freedom to travel, as part of the government's Vision 2030 initiative. Among the changes announced by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman were a relaxing of the requirement that women over 21 have a male "guardian" when traveling, both domestically and internationally. In addition, women over 21 can now apply for a passport without having to be sponsored by a man. The travel changes will take effect by August 31, the government said. Other changes recently announced include these:
- Women can now open businesses by themselves and run them without having to have a man's support or permission.
- Women have the right to equal pay for equal work and cannot be fired because they are pregnant.
- Women can be recognized as a guardian to children who are not of legal age.
- Women can now officially register marriage, childbirth, and divorce.
Solar-powered Yacht to Bring Teen Climate Activist to U.N. Summit
July 29, 2019
The teenage climate activist sensation Greta Thunberg will leave her native Sweden and travel to a U.N. global warming summit in New York, and she will be going by boat. Thunberg, who is now 16, soared to international recognition in 2018 by going not to school but to Parliament in Stockholm to protest. She has since led the charge for events around the world, including a series of Climatestrike days, in which students and adults in cities on most continents followed Thunberg's example and spent school 
hours protesting against the pace of climate change. She is not attending school this year in order to focus fully on her campaign to raise awareness about climate change. She does not fly as a protest of the large amount of carbon emissions generated by airplanes (the same reason that she refuses to travel on cruise ships). She will be sailing across the Atlantic Ocean in the solar-powered racing boat Malizia II. Underwater turbines also power the 60-foot yacht. Thunberg's seaborne trip, which is to begin in mid-August, is expected to take two weeks. Also on her schedule are events in Canada and Mexico.The New York summit takes place on September 23.She has announced that she will also attend the meetings of the annual U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, which will occur this year in December in Santiago, Chile. She intends to get there by train and bus.
Roman-era Dig in Britain Unearths Joke Pen
July 29, 2019
A 2000-year-old pen with a joke inscribed on it is part of a find during excavations in London recently. The pen is really an iron stylus–what passed for a writing implement in A.D. 70, to which the stylus dates–and the inscription on stylus is an example of the kind of mirth that would have been common in Roman times but also hasn't lost luster for today's jokesters: "I have come from the city. I bring you a welcome gift with a sharp point that you may remember me. I ask, if fortune allowed, that I might be able [to give] as generously as the is way is long [and] as my purse is empty." A team digging on behalf of the Museum of London Archaeology found the pen and many artifacts during excavations on the bank of the river Walbrook. The excavations, which were near Cannon Street station, took place from 2010 to 2014.
Canadian Coin Shaped Like Country
July 15, 2019
Canada has added a new edge–several, actually–to the national currency tradition with a coin shaped like the country. In honor of Canada Day, which is on July 1, the Royal Canadian Mint released a limited edition coin shaped like the geographical outline of Canada. On the face are animals to represent the country's 13 provinces and territories. On the obverse is Queen Elizabeth. The Mint printed only 2,000 of the "Canadian Landscape" coins, which retailed at $339 Canadian (US$260).
Intact Viking Boat Burial Found in Sweden
July 9, 2019
Archaeologists in Sweden have found two Viking-era ship burials in Gamla Uppsala, one of which contains the remains of a person, a horse, and a dog. Crews were digging around the site of a medieval cellar and well in order to create space for a modern building when they discovered the two boat burials. In one grave, the remains of the man were in the stern and were intact. The animal remains were in the bow of the boat. Also accompanying the man were a sword, a shield, a spear, and a large decorative comb. The other grave had been damaged and revealed little. Few of the dead during Viking times were buried in this manner, so the find is unusual, said Anton Seiler, the lead archaeologist. Nearly always, the person so buried was from an upper societal class. Most such burials contained jewelry or precious stones as well. Also unusual was that the man's remains were found intact; it was far more common for Vikings to cremate their dead.
Medieval Chess Piece Bought for $6 Sells for $929,000
July 2, 2019
A medieval chess piece has sold at nearly $1 million at auction; the seller paid $6 for it when he bought it 55 years. The object was the Lewis Warder, part of the Lewis Chessmen set, most of which is in the British Museum. The 3.5-inch-high piece depicts a bearded person wielding a sword and holding a shield. It was the medieval equivalent of a rook, or castle. The seller was a descendant of the person who bought the chess piece for $6 in 1964 and, unaware of its worth, kept it in a drawer. When the owner died, his family asked the auction house Sotheby's to assess the piece and then put the item up for sale. It was the first time that a Lewis piece has gone up for auction. The buyer, who remained anonymous, paid $929,000.
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Social Studies for Kids
copyright 2002–2019
David White
