Innholdsfortegnelse for No. 131 i The Week Junior

On Sunday 3 June, Guatemala’s Volcán de Fuego (which is Spanish for Volcano of Fire) erupted, spewing lava into nearby villages and blowing ash and smoke more than 3.7 miles into the sky. Guatemala is a country in Central America, just south of Mexico. At least 75 people have died and more than 300 have been injured. Many more are missing, and these numbers are expected to rise. This is thought to be Guatemala’s most violent volcanic eruption for decades. What happened? Just before midday in Guatemala, the Fuego volcano began to erupt. Fast-moving lava flows engulfed nearby villages and a mixture of rock, gas and ash was thrown into the sky. The sky turned dark with ash and the country’s main international airport was closed. Consuelo Hernandez, a resident…

The results of a new study into the treatment of early-stage breast cancer have been hailed as a major breakthrough. It means that thousands of women in the UK will no longer have to go through chemotherapy, according to researchers. Every year, around 23,000 women in the UK are diagnosed with the most common form of breast cancer. Cancer is a condition where abnormal cells quickly grow and spread in the body, making a person very sick, and some people die. Chemotherapy is a treatment, often used after surgery, to lower the risk of cancer spreading or returning. It can save lives, but the drugs have nasty side effects, such as vomiting, tiredness and hair loss. After women have been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer, they undergo tests to determine…

Madrid, Spain Prime minister forced to resign Mariano Rajoy, the Spanish prime minister, has been forced to leave his job. On 1 June, Spain’s parliament held a vote to see if they wanted him to stay or go. The majority of the members of parliament voted to say they have no confidence in Rajoy and he must resign. The vote was held after several former members of Rajoy’s political party were found guilty of not following the rules and misusing money. Pedro Sánchez was sworn in as the new prime minister. Hawaii, US Don’t toast marshmallows on volcano People living in Hawaii have been urged not to toast marshmallows over the hot lava spewing from the Kilauea volcano. The US Geological Survey (USGS) issued the warning after it received a…

Stick insects have come up with a cunning strategy for spreading their eggs –they use their worst enemy. A team of researchers from Kobe University, in Japan, have found that eggs inside a female stick insect’s body can survive being eaten by a bird. Exiting the bird undigested (in birds’ poo), some of them go on to hatch as normal. It was commonly assumed that being eaten by a bird meant the end of a stick insect and any eggs it might be carrying inside it. The Kobe team put this theory to the test, however, by feeding the eggs of three species of stick insect to brown-eared bulbuls – one of the bugs’ main predators. They discovered that when the bulbuls pooed, up to a fifth of the stowaway…

On 28 May, the European Commission (EC) proposed that the ten most commonly found single-use plastic items littering beaches and oceans should be banned. This list includes water bottles, cutlery, straws, plates, cotton buds and balloon sticks. The EC is responsible for proposing and enforcing laws in the European Union (EU) – a group of 28 member states, whose governments work together. “The European Commission promised to be big on the big issues and plastic waste is undeniably a big issue... because plastic waste ends up in our air, our soil, our oceans and in our food,” said Frans Timmermans, first vice president of the EC. Banning these items and encouraging more environmentally friendly alternatives will help protect marine life from eating plastic or getting tangled up in it, which…

Colossal canyons discovered under Antarctica’s ice Scientists from the European Space Agency’s PolarGAP project have discovered three colossal canyons hidden deep under the ice at the South Pole. The deep valleys run for hundreds of miles, winding through tall under-ice mountains. The biggest, named the Foundation Trough, is more than 200 miles long (roughly the distance between London and Manchester) and around 21 miles wide. The other two canyons are 186 miles and 93 miles long. A mountain range is currently preventing most of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet from flowing into the sea. Dr Kate Winter, from Northumbria University in Newcastle, believes that if the ice sheet thins, the canyons could increase the speed and flow of ice to the edge of the continent. This could lead to a…

This summer, hundreds of schoolgirls from England and Scotland will enjoy their first taste of motor sport. They will have the chance to race in a kart, explore a replica Formula One car and speak to racing professionals. It’s all thanks to Dare To Be Different, a campaign that encourages girls to take an interest in motor racing. There are currently many more men involved in motor sports than women, so Dare To Be Different wants to change this. The events are held at karting centres and racetracks and let girls aged eight to 11 experience what a career in racing is like. They can change a kart’s wheel or talk in front of a TV camera, just like professional racing drivers do. “I really enjoyed the pit-stop challenge and…

Toothbrushes Using a tool to brush your teeth dates back to 3500BC–3000BC, when civilisations such as the Babylonians created brushes by fraying the ends of twigs. In 1600BC, chewing-sticks made from aromatic wood were developed in China. Toothpaste It’s believed that in about 5000BC, the ancient Egyptians used a paste to clean their teeth. Over the years ingredients have varied across the world. The ancient Greeks and Romans would use a paste made from crushed bones and oyster shells. False teeth In about 700BC, the first false teeth were made in Italy, using teeth from another person or animal. The ivory of animals such as elephants, hippos and walruses was also used to make teeth. Today, false teeth are made from plastic.…

Natural-history expert Dame Jane Goodall – famous for her studies of chimpanzees in the wild – is supporting a new series of virtual-reality (VR) films that aim to teach young people about protecting wild habitats. VR allows users to explore virtual worlds while wearing a headset. The project is called The Wild Immersion, and is described as “the first virtual reserve”, with films featuring animals including lions, pandas, giraffes and a baby elephant. The first three films were shown at the Cannes Film Festival in May, and there are plans to exhibit them on VR headsets in shopping centres, cinemas and hotels around the world in the coming months. They will also be shown in classrooms throughout the US. “The films are a way of interesting kids in conservation, and…

“We were on a slip’n’slide when The Week Junior came through the letter box and we couldn’t resist reading it so we multi-tasked!” Amy and Anwen, Year 6 “Myguineapigloves The Week Junior!” Chloé, Year 4 “I wrapped a birthday present in a recent issue of The Week Junior and wow, what beautiful wrapping paper” Anna, Year 5…

The UK’s top two universities, Cambridge and Oxford, have been criticised for not giving enough places to black students. One newspaper reported that between 2012 and 2016, some colleges at Cambridge University did not accept any black students. A separate report showed that more than a quarter of colleges at Oxford failed to accept a single black student between 2015 and 2017. Cambridge University says it can’t bring about change on its own and needs the help of schools and parents.…

The summer term usually includes classes in the sunshine and perhaps the occasional ice cream on the walk home. It’s a time when the school year unwinds to an end. Music, role-play and sports slowly replace Sats and end-of-year assessments, as important preparations are made for the year ahead. For older pupils, this means finding out what subjects they will study for their GCSEs. Although most schools consider students’ wishes, there is a limit to how much say pupils get in what they choose to study. Some people think this is a sensible approach; others think schools are becoming too prescriptive (this means allowing very few options). They argue that pupils should be able to choose the subjects they enjoy and are skilled at, but is this a good idea?…

Manju Devi has become the first female porter on the North Western Railway, in India. She took over the job, at Jaipur station, after her husband died. Traditionally, only men were selected for the role as it involves carrying passengers’ heavy bags, but Devi was given the chance to prove she could do it. She has now earned her porter licence and has been presented with an award by India’s president, Ram Nath Kovind. Devi, a mother of three teenage children, was one of 112 women who were celebrated by India’s Ministry of Women and Child Development for being role models. She said that “no job was tough” for women, and that carrying passengers’ luggage “was nothing [compared] to the burden of feeding three children”.…

On 14 June in Moscow, Russia, the world’s biggest football competition gets under way. Thirty-two countries will battle to be crowned champions in the final on 15 July. They include successful European teams such as Germany, who won the last competition, and Belgium, England, France, Portugal and Spain. Teams from North and South America, Africa, Asia, Australia and the Middle East will also compete. The World Cup is the ultimate prize in international football – only eight countries have lifted the famous trophy since the first tournament in 1930. All 64 games are being played in Russia, across 11 cities. The Fifa World Cup takes place every four years – the last event was held in Brazil in 2014. This is the first time Russia has hosted the World Cup.…

Nintendo’s Mario Kart games could be seen as a distraction, but a new scheme wants to use the famous racers to help young people focus. The project is the work of four engineering students at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, in the US, who created a way to measure people’s brainwaves using Mario Kart. The more focused the players were, the faster their kart would go, but if their attention wandered, it would slow down. The engineers used a Raspberry Pi computer, a pair of special glasses with sensors to track brain activity, and a keypad. Eventually the keypad will be exchanged for proper joysticks. The ultimate plan is for therapists to use it when working with young people with attention-deficit disorders (conditions that make it hard to focus), so that…

Would you try these flavours? At the seaside, do you prefer a refreshing ice cream or a bag of fish and chips, with a side of mushy peas and a dollop of ketchup? An ice-cream parlour in Herne Bay, Kent, has just made this decision a little easier. Makcari’s is now offering customers ketchup, mushy pea and Marmite-flavoured ice cream. Nejmi Hassan, who makes these unusual flavours, describes them as an acquired taste but hopes that they will become the “taste of the summer”. US goddesses nail it At Maria Ortiz’s nail salon in New Jersey, in the US, a group of women are bonding over their fingernails. Called the Long Nail Goddesses, some of them have nails that are up to 48 centimetres long. They meet at the salon…

Sheep invade village street Residents of a cul-de-sac in Maulden, Bedfordshire, were rudely awoken at 7am on 29 May by a flock of sheep. Neighbours became temporary shepherds as they rounded up the 40 invading animals onto a driveway until their owner could collect them. A local farmer apologised for the mess his escaped flock had made, as some gardens had been nibbled or pooed on. But what do you think? Did sheep really baa-rge their way onto a quiet street, or are we making it up?* Robot dogs get special funerals Around 800 funerals have been held for robot dogs at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo, Japan, since 2015. Called Aibo (short for artificial intelligence robot), the dogs were first produced by Sony in 1999. In 2014, Sony announced…

The US has announced it will charge any company in the US that imports steel from the European Union (EU), Canada and Mexico an extra 25%. Importing means bringing something in from another country. The charge, known as a tariff, is designed to limit the amount of steel the US buys from other countries, to encourage Americans to buy US steel instead. US president Donald Trump claims that if the US relies on steel from other countries, it will harm its metal industry, which could put the country in danger. Trump says the charges are a matter of national security. In March, Trump introduced charges on steel from countries all over the world, including China – where the US buys a lot of its steel from. However, Trump gave Canada,…

Anew strategy (plan of action) to fight terrorism has been announced by Sajid Javid, the UK Government’s home secretary, who is the politician in charge of the country’s security. In a speech in London on 4 June, he said he will make changes to the existing strategy, known as Contest, to help protect the UK from terrorists. A terrorist is someone who uses or threatens violence to achieve their goals. What is Contest? Contest has four main aims: to prevent people becoming terrorists; to pursue (track) people who are planning an attack; to protect UK citizens; and to be prepared in case an attack happens. It was created in 2003, but since then the strategy has developed. The latest version was introduced following attacks in London and Manchester last year,…

Name: Casi Age: 13 “I go to the Urdd Eisteddfod every year to compete with my school. It’s a really fun festival to be part of. There are so many competitions for contestants and schools to choose from, ranging from singing, acting, dancing and other performing competitions to craft, photography, textiles and even maths. The Eisteddfod means so much to me, it’s amazing the experiences you get there on the stage in front of so many people, all there to celebrate the Welsh language.” One of Europe’s largest youth festivals took place in Wales from 28 May to 2 June, with 15,000 young people competing for prizes in dance, literature, art, singing and cookery. The festival, called the Urdd (pronounced “air-rth”) National Eisteddfod, took place in Brecon and Radnorshire. The…

Rosemary Powell has been selling poppies to raise money for war veterans and their families for more than 97 years. Now, aged 103, she’s decided it’s time to retire. Powell started selling poppies at the age of six with her mother in 1921 – the year of the first ever Poppy Appeal. While living in Africa in the 1950s, Powell made poppies out of paper to give to the locals on Remembrance Day (when people pay respect to members of the armed forces who have died in the line of duty). She also sold the French equivalent of poppies, blue cornflowers, while living in France. The Royal British Legion – a charity that helps war veterans and their families – says that Powell’s fundraising efforts have been “nothing short of…

Set in the Surrey Hills, the tower on Leith Hill was built in 1765. Standing at a height of 313 metres, the top of the tower is the highest point in south-east England. With the help of one of its telescopes, visitors can enjoy views of the London skyline and, on clear days, even the English Channel. Birds of prey, such as red kites and buzzards, often soar overhead. It’s thought that goshawks breed in the woods around, but sightings of these secretive birds are very rare. Find out more at tinyurl.com/TWJ-leithhilltower…

The National Trust has discovered that the puffin population in the Farne Islands, off the Northumberland coast, has declined by 12% since 2013. The Trust says that this is “concerning” and will monitor the seabirds, which are vulnerable to extinction, to work out what’s going on. ● LIFESPAN IN THE WILD: At least 20 years. ● HABITAT: Offshore islands and cliffs in and around the North Atlantic. ● DIET: Puffins dive below the surface and use their wings to swim through the water and catch fish and sand eels. ● FUN FACT: Their bills have a jagged edge, which helps them carry fish: puffins have been seen carrying as many as 83 sand eels at once. BEAKY BLIGHTERS Puffins’ brightly coloured beaks have earned them many nicknames, such as “sea…

Twenty-five years ago, Jurassic Park made history when it tore into cinemas around the world. The movie transported audiences to a fictional world where dinosaurs roamed the planet, reigniting a passion for these prehistoric beasts. To celebrate the anniversary of the first film – and the 6 June release of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom – we have taken a dino-sized chomp at the science behind the films. Let’s chew over what’s fact and what’s fiction… Dino DNA The Jurassic Park story works like this: more than 66 million years ago, a mosquito feasts on dinosaur blood then gets trapped in tree resin, preserving the blood in its belly. Many years later, archaeologists (people who study past human activity revealed from under the ground) find the mosquito, extract the blood and…

Hats off Members of the United States Naval Academy celebrate their graduation in Maryland, US. I’ve only got eyes for you A baby panda watches over a lookalike toy at the National Zoo in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Heading home People descend Mount Ausangate after the annual Snow and Star festival in Ocongate, Peru. A sea of sunflowers A woman in traditional dress poses for photos among the flowers in Hebi, China. Making a splash Formula One driver Daniel Ricciardo takes a dive after winning the Monaco Grand Prix. Canine conga One man and his dogs put on a show in Germany. Loved-up lizards A pair of romantic reptiles make a heart shape with their tails in Java, Indonesia.…

Visitors will have lots to smile about at London’s Wellcome Collection as more than 150 teeth-related objects go on display. From tooth fairies and vampires to our ever-changing relationship with dentists, all is revealed in an exhibition called Teeth. Our teeth reveal a lot about who we are. They’re the only visible part of our skeleton and they play a vital role in many things we do every day, such as talking, eating and expressing emotions like happiness or fear. The exhibition shows how dentistry (the branch of medicine that involves the health of teeth and gums) began, and it includes the first scientific paper on teeth, published by Pierre Fauchard in 1728. Alongside this are early dentists’ tools, an explanation of how the dentists’ drill was developed and how…

On 3 June, viewers voted Lost Voice Guy as the winner of Britain’s Got Talent. The 37-year-old comedian from Newcastle, whose real name is Lee Ridley, has cerebral palsy – a condition that affects his speech, movement and coordination. Ridley uses a voice synthesiser (a device that converts written text into speech) in his performances. Almost nine million people tuned in to watch Ridley win the £250,000 prize and the chance to perform in front of the royal family at the Royal Variety Performance 2018. Following his victory, Ridley said, “I have been blown away by the support of the judges and the general public.” DID YOU KNOW? The scientist Professor Stephen Hawking, who died earlier this year, relied on a voice synthesiser for most of his life.…