Dallas Seavey Wins Iditarod Third Time In Four Years!For most mushers, even completing the Iditarod aka the Last Great Race On Earth, is a big achievement. But don't tell that to Mitch and Dallas Seavey. They have dominated the thousand-mile sled dog race across Alaska for the last four years. 28-year-old Dallas, who took top billing in 2012 and 2013, was once again the first to cross the finish line in Nome at 4.13 am on Wednesday March 18th....
Read news articleNAO, The Humanoid Robot Helps Students Master Handwriting SkillsJust a few weeks ago, NAO, the humanoid robot made headlines when it became Mitsubishi Bank's first non-human employee. Now the cute 23-inch tall robot that weighs a mere 5.5 kilograms (12.7 pounds) is in the news again. This time around NAO is helping students develop good handwriting skills....
Read news articleSmile! It's The International Day Of Happiness And First Day Of Spring!...
Read news articleTiny Wood Frogs Survive Winter By Partially Freezing Their BodiesMost animals that hibernate during cold winter months have thick coats of fur or layers of fat to protect them. However, the Rana sylvatica species of the wood frog that can be found in Alaska and the Arctic Circle has neither. Therefore this tiny amphibian has adapted by freezing and thawing itself depending on the external temperature....
Read news articleSpacewalks Have Come A Long Way In Fifty Years!Fifty years ago, on March 18th, 1965, Soviet Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov took the first spacewalk. It lasted just twelve minutes and almost ended in a disaster. That's because the vacuum of space caused his pressurized suit to inflate and become rigid, making it impossible for Leonov to re-enter the Voskhod 2 space capsule airlock. The quick thinking astronaut let out some of the precious air from his suit and despite severe decompression sickness, manage to stumble back in and live to tell his harrowing tale....
Read news articleVideo Of The Week - Lincoln Middle School Basketball Players Display Incredible "Bully Handling" Skills!Some Wisconsin basketball players are being lauded not for their ball handling, but bully handling skills. Last year, seventh graders from Lincoln Middle School in Wisconsin were in the midst of a basketball game when they overheard some bullies heckling Desiree Andrews, a cheerleader who has Down syndrome....
Read news articleHow Jan Scheuermann Controlled A Fighter Jet Simulator Using Only Her MindIn 1996, Jan Scheuermann, a successful businesswoman and mother of two, began to notice her legs were not quite moving along with the rest of her body. A visit to the doctor revealed that she suffered from spinocerebellar degeneration, a rare genetic disease where the brain gradually loses connection to body muscles. By 2003, Jan had lost all ability to control her limbs and was paralyzed from the neck down....
Read news articleGet Your Green On! It's Almost Saint Patrick's DayIt's time to tuck away those black and blues that you have been donning all winter and get some green on! That's because Tuesday March 17th is St. Patrick's Day, which means that those not sporting the color will have to endure painful pinches! Of course this fun holiday is also about searching for four-leaf clovers and leprechauns that can lead you to gold. So how did the death anniversary of a once obscure saint who was not even Irish by birth, result in all these fun traditions? Read on....
Read news articleMythical Lost City Discovered in HondurasIt sounds like the plot from a National Treasure movie, but this time, the discovery of an ancient city in Central America is real! On February 25th, researchers emerged from La Mosquitia, a very remote jungle area of Honduras, with some incredible news. They had been able to locate the mythical “White City,” rumors of which have persisted since the 16th Century....
Read news articleFossil Discovery in Kenya Reveals Modern-Day Hippos Evolved In AfricaResearchers have long suspected that hippos evolved from a family of plant-eating, semi-aquatic mammals called anthracotheres. The ancient animals that roamed freely all the way from North America to Asia inhabited Earth about 40 million years ago. However, scientists could never verify the theory since the only fossils of ancient hippos discovered thus far, dated back just 15 million years. Now thanks to Fabrice Lihoreau, there is finally some proof....
Read news articlePi Enthusiasts Prepare To Celebrate "Once In A Lifetime" EventPi Day that is celebrated on March 14th (3.14) annually, is always a significant occasion even for people that are not particularly fond of math. That's because while celebrations may begin with a discussion of the symbol, they invariably end with consuming different variations of Pi's yummy namesake - pie! However, this year promises to be even more special. That's because, for the first time and last time this century, the day will fall on 3/14/15, which happen to be the first five digits of Pi!...
Read news articleMarch On Selma Bridge Commemorates 50th Anniversary Of "Bloody Sunday"Fifty years ago, on Sunday, March 7th, 1965, six hundred civil rights activists gathered at the Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma, Alabama to start a peaceful 54-mile trek to the state capitol in Montgomery. The activists were upset at the wrongful death of Marion resident Jimmy Lee Jackson and the denial of their constitutional right to vote and planned to take their cause directly to Alabama Governor George Wallace....
Read news articleVideo Of The Week - Japan's Fire-Walking FestivalOn Sunday, March 8th, thousands of people made their way to Tokyo's Mt. Takao to observe a unique tradition - watching practitioners of the Shugendo religion walk across a path of smoldering embers....
Read news articleWichita Seniors Prove That Pranks Do Not Have To Be Mean-Spirited To Be "Cool"Every year, high school seniors across the country prank their teachers and principals. Some pranks are funny, others borderline cruel, but few are as heartwarming as the recent one pulled by the students of North High School in Kansas....
Read news articleCycle for Science: A Cross Country Adventure with a MissionThe idea of riding a bike almost 4,000 miles across the country seems like an impossible task for most, but not for Elizabeth Case and Rachel Woods-Robinson. That's because these young scientists have a mission. They want to educate middle school students about physics and renewable energy and also encourage young girls to pursue careers in science....
Read news articleIndia's Holi Festival Welcomes Spring With Vibrant Bursts Of Color...
Read news articleSurprise! Your Dog Can Tell If You Are Happy Or AngryWhile every dog owner knows that their pooch can discern their moods perfectly, scientists have always been a little skeptical. Now thanks to some researchers at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Austria, we finally have some tangible evidence....
Read news articleWhite And Gold Or Blue And Black? The Great Dress Debate!It all began innocently enough. On Thursday, February 26th, 21-year-old Scottish singer Caitlin McNeil posed a simple question along with a photo of a dress on the social media website, Tumblr. It said, “Guys, please help me - is this dress white and gold, or blue and black?”...
Read news articlePrepare To Spring Forward! Daylight Saving Begins This SundayWith winter drawing to a close, at least according to the calendar, it is time for North Americans to "spring forward." This means that on Sunday March 8th, most residents will move their clocks ahead by an hour. Known as Daylight Saving Time, this age-old ritual dates all the way back to World War I....
Read news articleFinally, A Smart Marker That Captures, Digitizes and Streams Whiteboard Notes!While whiteboards are great tools for educators and other speakers to use when explaining a concept, they can be distracting. That's because instead of paying attention to the speaker, the audience is often busy jotting down what's on the board before it is erased. Now, thanks to the ingenious Equil Smartmarker, the notes can be digitally captured and transmitted to a smart device, enabling the audience to focus their full attention to what's being said....
Read news articleVideo Of The Week - New York Park Boasts Ice Volcano And Frozen WaterfallsFebruary is usually not a busy time for New York's Letchworth State Park. However, this year the park has been inundated with visitors trying to get a glimpse of its new albeit temporary attractions - an ice volcano and two frozen waterfalls....
Read news articleThe Mummified Monk That Rests Inside An Ancient Buddha StatueAsian countries like China, Thailand, and Vietnam are teeming with ancient statues of Buddha. Some are famous for their size, others because they are carved from solid gold and precious stones. However, very few can lay claim to being the final resting place of a 1,200-year-old mummified monk....
Read news articleScientists Discover Spectacular Ruby-Red SeadragonSeadragons may sound like mythical creatures from a fairy tale, but these tiny fish that are close cousins of seahorses and pipefish do exist. Found in the coastal waters off southern and western Australia, the gorgeous creatures that feed off tiny crustaceans, plankton, and larval fishes, do not have teeth or a stomach. They therefore, have to eat constantly and are always scouring the oceans in search of prey....
Read news articleThe Quest To Seek Out 52 Hertz AKA "World's Loneliest Whale"For over two decades, marine biologists have been listening to the songs from a whale that resides in the North Pacific. However, they have never heard a fellow mammal responding. That's because, unlike most whales that croon at a frequency of 15-20 hertz, this one sings at high pitched 52 hertz. As a result, this poor animal has never had a friend and, therefore, become known as the "world's loneliest whale!"...
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