Innehållsförteckning för December 2021 / Issue 27 från News Bites

Greetings, News Biters! And welcome to another issue of your favourite newspaper! Did you enjoy last month’s offering of hilarious photographs from the wild? We certainly did! In this month’s issue we’ve turned our attention to toys, as millions of children all around the world wait anxiously for Christmas to arrive. This Christian festival involves many traditions, but the giving and receiving of gifts is one that every child looks forward to. For many, the best part of the festive season is receiving new toys to play with on Christmas morning. With that in mind, we’ve brought you a feature packed full of hilarious and amazing facts all about toys. Our gift to you! You can check out these fun and festive facts on pages 12 and 13. Ho, ho,…

A Real Smart Saver Imagine if one of your gadgets saved your life? Well, that’s exactly what happened to a man in Singapore recently. He was on his motorbike when he collided with a van. The driver of the van didn’t stop or check to see if the motorcyclist was alright. The man lost consciousness but woke up to find emergency workers by his side. It turns out that his Apple watch had called an ambulance! It also called his girlfriend and other close contacts. Series 4 Apple Watch models can tell if the wearer falls. Then, if there is no movement after at least a minute, the watch contacts the emergency services and listed ‘important’ contacts. Never Too Late Do you always return your library books on time? Sometimes…

You may remember from last month’s Historical Diary that the UK première of the first Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, took place 20 years ago – and that got us thinking about books that bossed it as movies. Here’s our Top 3 ‘book-movies’ that you really must watch at least once in your life. In cinemas: 20 years ago! Rated: PG Starring: Daniel Radcliffe as Harry, Rupert Grint as Ron, Emma Watson as Hermione Directed by: Chris Columbus When JK Rowling’s bestselling first book of the Harry Potter series landed on the big screen, it became a huge hit straight away. Since then, it has raked in over $1 billion in revenue. For those of you who may not know, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone…

Victor Maker: Aston Martin Model: Victor Years: 2020 Fuel: Petrol Transmission: Six-speed manual Top speed: 322km/h Horsepower: 836HP Materials: Carbon fibre is used on the exterior and interior, including in the steering wheel BEHIND THE BADGE FACT Aston Martin is famous as 007’s car of choice in the James Bond movies. Aston Martin’s Q Branch builds one-off cars for customers. The branch is named after the Q Branch in the Bond movies – a fictional research department of the British Secret Service. 5 FAST FACTS 1. The Victor supercar was inspired by the Aston Martin V8 Vantage from 1977. Not only that, the car was named after the man in charge of developing the Vantage, Malcolm Victor Gauntlett. 2. The Victor had to be fitted with a special motorsport gearbox…

Polar Bear I’m a polar bear and I live in the Arctic, one of the planet’s coldest environments. I’m a big guy – in fact, I’m the world’s largest land predator. I’m just a shade under 3m long and I weigh about 600kg. Our females are only about half my size. My fur I have a thick coat of insulated, snow-white fur. I even have fur on the bottom of my paws, which gives me a good grip on the ice. My white coat provides good camouflage in the snow and ice, but under my fur I have black skin that soaks up the sun’s warming rays. It is important that I can keep this heat in during the bitterly cold winter months. Hunting In the winter months I walk…

The Wacky World of Sport Would you try this wacky sport? Have You Tried … Sumo Wrestling Sumo wrestling is the national sport of Japan and began over 1,500 years ago. The wrestlers are usually huge men who may weigh more than 150kg. They face each other in a raised ring which has a clay floor. At the start of a contest, the wrestlers (wearing the famous yukata costume) step into the ring known as a ‘dohyo’ and face each other, ready for battle. The rules are pretty simple. The winner is the first wrestler to force the other to step out of the ring or touch the ground with any body part other than their feet. Wrestlers use both ancient and modern wrestling techniques to do this. Fights usually…

Too Little, Too Late? Let’s Hope Not Too little, too late? After the COP26 climate talks, activists seem to feel a mixture of hope, disappointment and relief. Hope because the deal signed keeps the fight against global warming alive. Disappointment because it only just keeps it alive. And relief that at least some victories were achieved. Fossil Fuels Governments agreed to try harder to limit global warming to near 1.5°C (which must be done, scientists say). They agreed to ‘phase down’ the use of coal, the world’s worst polluter. At first, the agreement’s wording said ‘phase out’ but China and India insisted on changing it to ‘phase down’. Other countries were very angry but had to agree. Wealthy Countries Since COP25 in 2019, the wealthy countries had broken their promise…

Giant Panda Numbers Rising The giant panda, the national symbol of China, has been an endangered species for many years. In the 1980s, there were only around 1,000 of them left in the entire world. The number of these beautiful black-and-white animals had fallen due to poaching and the destruction of their habitat. In recent times, the Chinese have been trying to save them, and it appears that their efforts are proving successful. There are now almost 1,900 giant pandas in the Giant Panda National Park in Central China. The park will eventually connect 67 nature reserves stretching across Sichuan, Ningxia and Shaanxi provinces. This is good news, not only for the giant pandas and the Chinese, but also for people around the globe who love these adorable bears. Meteorite…

D is for … DOMINICAN REPUBLIC Official Name: Republica Dominicana Population: 10.5 million Capital: Santo Domingo Area: 48,670km² Highest point: Pico Duarte 3,098m Official Language: Spanish Money: Dominican Pesos There are two countries on the island of Hispaniola in the West Indies. The Dominican Republic is on the eastern side, with Haiti on the west. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and the Caribbean Sea to the south. The landscape The country is made up of rugged highlands, mountains and fertile valleys, along with some rainforest and savannah (grassy plains). Lago Enriquillo is a salt lake covering over 300km2, where wildlife including flamingos, iguanas and crocodiles can be seen. The Spanish Christopher Columbus explored Hispaniola in 1492, when he was trying to reach India but America…

The International Space Station (ISS) The International Space Station (ISS) is a large spacecraft which is in orbit around Earth. Crews of astronauts and cosmonauts (Russian astronauts) live and work on it. Several countries worked together to build and then use the space station. The ISS was built with parts that were made on Earth but assembled in space by astronauts. Most missions used NASA’s space shuttle to carry up the heavier pieces. The ISS is the largest structure ever built in space. It weighs around 42 tonnes (more than 320 cars) and is 109m long. The first piece was launched in November 1998. More pieces were added over the next two years before the station was ready for people to live and work there. The first crew arrived on…

Part 4: The Age of Reason The astronomers of the Renaissance (14th-17th century) suffered because of their new theories. Copernicus was afraid to publish his important discovery that the Sun was the centre of the universe until he was actually dying. The great Galileo was threatened with torture and imprisoned for his support of that idea. However, their efforts eventually led to the Age of Reason in the late 17th and 18th centuries. The great thinkers of that period believed that people should reason and think for themselves, rather than accept what the authorities or religion told them. Astronomers had more freedom than before to follow their passion – their desire to discover the secrets of the universe. Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695) Huygens was a Dutch astronomer who wondered about the…

In Safe Hands Every good team needs a safe pair of hands behind it. Goalkeeper is probably the toughest position to play in soccer. Unlike outfield players, every mistake a goalie makes is likely to cost their side a goal. They sometimes won’t touch the ball for long periods but must remain alert at all times. And they also need to be very brave, from defending corners to diving on the ball inside a packed penalty box. The role of the goalkeeper has changed dramatically over the past 150 years. They were once required to simply catch the ball and boot it downfield, but are now often used as an extra defender who needs to be as comfortable with the ball at their feet as their teammates. That is a…

Take the Train, Ditch the Plane Many scientists and citizens around the globe are working together to stop – or even reverse – climate change. One huge challenge to meet is related to the carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gases produced by aeroplanes. In some cases, air travel may be the only reasonable way to reach a destination. But sometimes other good choices do exist, like travelling by train. A plane releases many times more carbon dioxide than a train. Trains release less than any other transport (1%). The environmental group Greenpeace recently conducted a study in Europe. The results found that for about a third of typical short flights, taking a train instead of a plane would make sound sense to help the environment. The study showed that…

Ford Motor Company Began Using the Moving Assembly Line DEC 1 1913 Henry Ford was born on July 30, 1863, in Dearborn, Michigan, in the US. His parents were William Ford, who was born in County Cork, Ireland, and Mary Litogot, an American. Henry was the eldest of six children and was raised on the family’s farm near the city of Detroit. When he was young, Henry took a pocket watch apart to see how it worked. He then earned some pocket money by repairing broken watches for local people. He eventually left the farm in 1879, to work repairing machines in Detroit. In 1882, he returned to the family farm. He married Clara Bryant in 1888, and their only child, a boy named Edsel, was born in 1893. The…

1 WHAT’S IN A NAME? Her name is known all over the world, she’s had over 200 different careers, she’s starred in movies and she’s even had a song named after her. But did you know that the doll we all know as Barbie is really called Barbara Millicent Roberts. Fact! And speaking of names, did you know that Buzz Lightyear was almost called Lunar Larry … what on earth were they thinking over at Pixar? 2 PIE IN THE SKY Over 300 million frisbees have been sold throughout the world, but here’s something you might not know about them. The idea for this plate-shaped throwing toy came from a pie! When William Frisbie opened the Frisbie Pie Company in Connecticut, USA, in 1871, students from nearby universities used to…

CROSSWORD TIME ACROSS 7 Maker of the Victor supercar (5,6) 8 Toy Story’s Buzz Lightyear was almost called Lunar _______(5) 10 Maker of the hand-held Switch gaming device ______(8) 12 The countries Cuba, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Puerto Rico are referred to as the Greater _______ (8) 15 The Kick Flipper is a skateboard without what? (6) 16 The name of the first car Henry Ford built (11) 17 The Teddy Bear was named after US President Theodore ‘Teddy’______ (9) 18 UAE stands for the United Arab _______(8) 19 Italian navigator Christopher ________ explored Hispaniola in 1492(8) DOWN 1 Alexey Pajitnov created this classic arcade game (6) 2 The Rubik’s Cube was invented by _______ Rubik in 1974 (4) 3 The capital city of the Dominican Republic (5,7) 4…

People Working in the Community Blacksmith Blacksmithing is one of the world’s oldest trades – its history can be traced back more than 3,500 years, to the time when the Hittites (an ancient people of Turkey and Syria) discovered the process of forging iron ores. Before this, people used to make things with copper and bronze, but these are much softer metals and more easily worked on. When we think of a blacksmith today, we might think of someone who fits shoes onto horses and ponies. In fact, this tradesperson is a farrier. Although a farrier needs training from a blacksmith, the two trades should not be confused with one another. Blacksmiths work with iron and steel, often melting, shaping and joining the metals to make items such as gates,…

True Legends of Sport Babe Didrikson Zaharias Born: June 26, 1911 Died: September 27, 1956 Sport: Golf, athletics, basketball and more Titles: Two Olympic gold medals, 10 golf majors Mildred Ella Didrikson Zaharias was an American sportsperson who excelled in every sport she competed in. She earned the nickname ‘Babe’ during her teens – in reference to Babe Ruth, the legendary baseball player. Didrikson rose to prominence while playing for the All-America basketball team and competing in track and field. She won two gold medals and a silver at the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles, setting four world records along the way (including breaking her own record in the 80m hurdles final). As well as hurdles, her other gold came in the javelin, and she was denied a third gold…