Author: Lisa Mungovan

UFOs, or Unidentified Flying Objects, are officially known as U-A-Ps, or Unidentified Aerial Phenomena. Whatever you call them, people have filmed pyramid-shaped objects flying through the sky, and the US military confirmed that they also photographed them. Once they can explain what the they saw, I guess they’ll become Identified Flying Objects.

Let’s learn a bit about dolphins, for Dolphin Day! Dolphins are mammals. Even though they spend their life in water, they need to breathe air. They are very intelligent, have excellent eyesight and hearing, and can make a wide range of sounds. There are 40 different dolphin species. The Amazon River dolphin, is pink!

Stretch your arms up into the air. Go on, stand up on your tippy-toes, and stretch higher. It’s Reach As High As You Can Day! Now go outside and study the clouds or the stars, because it’s Look Up At The Sky Day. Take time to notice the world, and reach for your dreams!

99Recycle is a Russian company, that’s cleaning up Saint Petersburg, one backpack at a time. They’re recycling the mountains of garbage that have piled up in the city, to create school supplies, skateboards, and even bicycles. The company uses the recycled plastic in its 3D printer. They’ve re-purposed 70 tons of plastic so far!

The NASA space program uses lots of hi-tech gear, on its missions to other planets. But sometimes, simple is best. If you look closely at the Mars rover, you’ll see zip ties, holding cables in place. They’re just more heavy-duty than the ones you might use, so they can withstand high levels of radiation.

When an insect or a breeze touches a spider’s web, it produces vibrations, like when you twang a guitar string. Scientists worked with artist Tomas Saraceno, to create a virtual reality world, where you can interact with spider webs, to create sounds. The instrument, called Spider’s Canvas, lets you hear music like a spider!

Since 1948, people have enjoyed playing Scrabble, the game where you form words from randomly chosen letters. Today, on Scrabble Day, challenge your friends or family to a game! If you don’t have the board game, you can always get the app on a phone or tablet, and play online. Scrabble’s good for your brain!

Last night was the beginning of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of prayer and fasting. Most Muslims will fast from dawn until dusk each day, meaning no food or drink while the sun is shining. They celebrate a meal with family or friends at night. Some communities decorate with outdoor lights, like at Christmas.

Collecting comic books can pay off, but you have to be patient. An Action Comics from 1938, which introduced a new character named Superman, recently sold at auction, for $3,250,000. The original price was only 10 cents. In the meantime, reading comic books is always fun, or you could create your own comic, that’ll be worth millions.

A new fabric developed in China, could turn your jacket, into a touch-screen. The flexible material is powered by solar energy, and can be washed without harming it. You could pull up a map on your sleeve, while riding your bike, or maybe play video games, on your jeans. What would you use it for?