Kids News - Articles for Grade 6

Scientists have long maintained that the skin, which makes up roughly 15 percent of a person’s body mass, is the largest organ in the human body. However, now researchers from New York University's School of Medicine appear to have stumbled upon what they believe may be an even larger organ. Called the interstitium, it is not solid like the heart or liver, but a network of fluid-filled spaces that is present throughout the body to protect the rest of our organs....

The Earth Day Network may have an unexpected ally in its quest to solve the global plastic pollution crisis: bacteria. More specifically, an enzyme produced by the Ideonella sakaiensis microbes. Dubbed PETase, it can expertly break down PET (polyethylene terephthalate), one of the most common types of plastic, within days, instead of the over 450 years it takes the synthetic material to decompose naturally....

Over the years, Germany’s Festo has engineered some incredibly cool and functional bio-inspired robots, including ones that mimic ants, butterflies, flying jellyfish, and seagulls. On March 27, the electrical automation company added to the impressive list with two new creations — a realistic flying fox bat and a somersaulting robotic spider....

On Sunday, April 22, more than a billion people around the world will celebrate Earth Day by participating in neighborhood clean-up efforts. The grassroots movement began in 1970 when twenty million Americans took to the streets to voice their concern about the deteriorating environment and to urge lawmakers to take action before it was too late. Now boasting over 50,000 partners in 195 countries, the Earth Day Network (EDN) is credited with instigating many of our current environmental policies, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Endangered Species Act....

Every year from March to October, Christian Moullec, aka “Birdman,” takes to the skies aboard his two-seater adapted light aircraft, derived from hang-gliders. However, the 58-year-old Frenchman’s daily 30-minute flight is not just to enjoy the spectacular views, but to guide flocks of lesser white-fronted geese through safe migration paths which the birds can teach future generations....

Looking for a true out-of-this-world vacation? Then you are in luck. On Thursday, April 5, Texas-based start-up Orion Span announced they were taking reservations for Aurora Station, the world’s first luxury hotel in space, which is expected to launch in 2021 and begin welcoming visitors by 2022....

Tomorrow is Friday the 13th. While the dreaded combination evokes feelings of unease even among non-believers, for the superstitious, it is the unluckiest day of the year. Their intense fear, dubbed friggatriskaidekaphobia, leads to symptoms that range from mild anxiety to a nagging suspicion of bad luck to full-blown panic attacks. While some of the trepidation can be attributed to the namesake movie series, the day’s ill-fated reputation was well-established long before Jason Voorhees, the film’s hockey-masked villain, first appeared on the big screen in 1980....

With memories of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, which ravaged Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico in 2017, still fresh in their minds, residents of the US Atlantic and Gulf Coast are bracing for yet another busy hurricane season. Researchers at Colorado State University predict a slightly above-average 2018 season with 14 tropical storms, at least three of which are expected to be major hurricanes, Category 3 or higher! Though having the advance warning is helpful, it would be even better if we could find a way to stop the deadly storms from forming altogether. Now, Norwegian researchers may have found the answer in — of all places — air bubbles....

Though many artists specialize in cityscapes very few create masterpieces as detailed and intricate as those sketched by Stephen Wiltshire. Even more impressive is that each monochromatic landscape, which takes the British artist just a few days to complete, is drawn entirely from memory, a talent that has earned him the nickname “The Human Camera.”...