Hubble telescope spots ‘northern lights’ on Saturn Over a period of seven months in 2017, the Hubble Space Telescope photographed a beautiful display of northern lights over Saturn’s north pole. Here on Earth, people experience the northern lights (southern lights in the southern hemisphere) when fast-moving particles from the sun travel along the solar wind and interact with the planet’s magnetic field. Auroras, also called the northern or southern lights, are caused by charged particles moving down toward the poles and then interacting with…
The world says goodbye to the beautiful, Brazilian Spix Macaw after BirdLife International announced its extinction Wednesday. The blue-feathered Spix’s macaw which starred in the popular children’s film, Blue Sky Studios’ Rio is now extinct, the BirdLife International said in a recent statistical analysis. The Spix’s macaw, along with the cryptic tree hunter, the Pernambuco pygmy-owl, the poo-uli, is the eighth bird species to go extinct or labeled highly endangered during this century. BirdLife International’s chief scientist, Stuart Butchart, explained…
Cary Bazalgette’s criticism (Letters, 29 December) of our recent letter (Screen-based lifestyle harms children’s health, 26 December) ignores the crucial distinction between content and process. If the process of screen exposure is harmful, any further discussion about content becomes superfluous. What conceivable rationale is there for engaging very young children with ICT screen technologies when it will inappropriately accelerate early child development, distort the natural development of the young child’s delicate growing senses and displace equivalent learning achievable through real,…
Ever wonder what the future holds? Some of the best people to ask might be your kids, nephews or nieces. It turns out, they’ve got a tech-forward outlook on what the future holds. Decluttr.com asked a group of children aged 4- to 11-years-old to conceptualize the tech products they predict people will use in 30 years’ time. Then, the company asked a concept artist to bring their sketches to life. The result? An “eatwatch,” a “recycle bot,” a “print-a-food” and more. For 4-year-old Ayana,…
Women in Saudi Arabia are now allowed to drive. For nearly 30 years, there has been a law in Saudi Arabia that said women could not drive a vehicle. Many women and men protested the law. They said it was outdated and sexist. (“Sexist” means that it is bad because it is against one gender and not others). Saudi women often had to hire a driver in order to get from one place to another, if there was no male available…
Galaxies are a bit like pets: You’ve got to give them their food steadily, over a long time. Dumping a year’s worth of kibble into a giant bowl for your puppy might help your pet pack on the pounds, but this wouldn’t be good for the animal in the long term — especially once that food source ran out early. Give a galaxy all its fuel in the first eons of its life, and something similar happens. The object becomes…
Companies that want creative and innovative employees should be looking at a candidate’s middle school test scores, new research shows. A Vanderbilt University study discovered that that early spatial ability — the skill required to mentally manipulate 2D and 3D objects — predicts the development of new learning and innovation abilities, especially in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). One of the study’s authors, psychology researcher David Lubinski, said we currently live in the age of human capital…
It’s taken nearly 2,000 years, but regular folks will soon get to feel what it is like to walk on water. This is thanks to a project by the artist Christo. He may or may not have had his namesake in mind when envisioning his latest project. It’s titled, “The Floating Piers.” “Any interpretation is legitimate,” Christo, 80, allowed graciously. He spoke in an interview with The Associated Press. He was at the picturesque Lake Iseo. It is in northern…
The Confederate flag. The Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage. Policing minority communities. Nuclear weapons and Iran. Summer often brings a lull in the news, but not this year. And, come September, students are going to want to talk about these headlines. But how should teachers navigate our nation’s thorny politics? Do politics belong in the classroom at all, or should schools be safe havens from never-ending partisan battles? Can teachers use controversial issues as learning opportunities, and, if so,…
Activities outside the classroom — especially community engagement and sports — may help low-income, urban youth academically as they transition into middle school, according to a new study by New York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. The findings, published online in the American Journal of Community Psychology, suggest that participating in extracurricular activities may be protective for low-income youth by providing a setting for development outside the classroom. Middle school is an important yet vulnerable time for…
Planet ‘Nine’ playing hide-and-seek, and its hiding right beyond Neptune. And the mysterious therories of the ninth planet is back again. Many have raised a question whether there is a ninth planet? Well if you go by the latest report, yes there exist a planet nine. But there is Planet Nine doesn’t officially exist … yet. Even if there is, it would be way too far away for stargazers to see with the naked eye or even a big telescope….
Education writers rarely examine high school sports, but something is happening there that might help pull our schools out of the doldrums. In the last school year, a new national survey found that 7.7 million boys and girls took part in high school sports. This is 55.5 percent of all students, according to the report from the National Federation of State High School Associations, and the 22nd straight year that participation had increased. Despite two major recessions and numerous threats to cut athletic…
A break in intense concentration can promote good mental health. High school physical education classes have the potential to exert a tremendous positive impact on the students’ mental, physical and social well-being. The opportunity to mentally relax during a tough academic schedule helps to reduce tension and mental stress. Physical education classes also provide an excellent opportunity to focus on physical health and may serve as an outlet for socialization. Boosts the Immune System Participation in physical education classes contributes…
TEENS, DO YOU WANT TO be in a happier mood, do better in school, have more energy for fun activities and make friends who share common interests in music and sports? Well, that’s a no-brainer. And speaking of the brain, feeding it the right foods is exactly what can help you achieve this state of teenage bliss. Teens are faced with myriad physical changes and academic demands, all while being bombarded by what their peers are doing – from what not to wear, to what to say and when to say…
he Student Art Guide is on the lookout for the best high school art teacher blogs, social media profiles and art education websites. Below is a list of the gems we have found. The best art teacher blogs and personal websites Developing Nicely Developing Nicely is a stunning blog by Chris Francis, UK Art teacher and Senior Leader at St Peter’s Catholic School, Bournemouth, England. The blog contains thought-provoking articles that are illustrated with creative, contemporary student artwork, such as the examples shown below…