News Wrap: Week of October 26th

by Elisabeth Morgan

Throughout the week we like to tweet #ShareWithKids when we find news we think your students will love (follow us on Twitter @Kids_Discover!) Here’s a recap of what’s going on now. Check back each week for more news in science and social studies, tailored for kids.

 

Hurricane Season is in Full Swing #ExtremeWeather

Hurricane PatriciaHurricane Patricia hit Mexico on Friday as a category 5 hurricane that had the potential to be hugely destructive. Before she hit the pacific coast of Mexico, Patricia was the strongest hurricane the National Hurricane Center has ever recorded- with winds of over 200 miles per hour! Luckily, the worst part of the storm hit sparsely-populated mountain ranges and had subsided into a low pressure storm by Saturday. 

kurricane kappu

Photo Erik de Castro/Reuters via The Guardian

 

Super typhoon Koppu surged the Phillipines early last week. Over 70 villages were flooded after three days of heavy rain. By the end of the storm on Thursday, more than 109,000  people had relocated from their homes into evacuation centers.

 

 

 

Rare Roman Medusa Head found in Turkey #Archaeology

University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Photo University of Nebraska-Lincoln via Live Science

US archaeologists found a marble sculpture of the head of Medusa in Southern Turkey last week that dated back to Roman times. Findings like this are rare because early Christians living in that area after the Romans destroyed any art depicting pagan gods.

 

 

This Type of Bacteria Could Help Save the Environment #Ecology

polluted city

TTstudio/Shutterstock

Researchers have found deep sea bacteria that could help minimize pollution and greenhouse gases. Thiomicrospira crunogena evolved near hydro-thermal vents so that it can withstand industrial levels of heat. The key is that it helps turn damaging carbon dioxide gas into harmless bicarbonate, the stuff that baking soda is made out of. 

 

Bacteria can be beautiful, too! #Microbes

Image via Microbe World

Image via Microbe World

The American Society for Microbiology recently held an art contest where participants created masterpieces out of different strains of bacteria grown in a pitri dish! The winners were a scientist and painter duo who created  a beautiful image called “Neurons.” The contest was organized to get people talking about bacteria in a different way.

 

Naturalist Muralist Finishes an Epic Three Month Journey #Birds

Hitnes Mural New OrleansItalian muralist Hitnes just finished a three-month journey through the United states, where he created large-scale paintings of North American birds. He was inspired by 19th century nature-lover John James Audubon, who published an extensive hand-painted catalog of birds. The artist recorded his journey on the website “The Image Hunter,” and on his Instagram account @The.ImageHunter.

 

Elisabeth Morgan

Elisabeth Morgan is Kids Discover's content and community manager. She participated in the Teacher's Assistantship Program in France and was an assistant teacher at the International School of Louisiana in New Orleans before moving to New York to go to Columbia Journalism School. She joined the Kids Discover team in 2015.