Okay, so I heard about this the other day on NPR. But I had completely forgotten about it until recently. Apparently, Cambridge students got together with some children to launch teddy bears into space. Of course, this is all an effort to get children excited about science. I imagine the Cambridge students probably got just as big a kick out of this as the little kids though...
The kids, ages 11-12, didn't just lob the teddies into space. They had to design spacesuits for them to protect them from the cold. The tricky little devils used everything from hi-tech foam to old malt containers. They actually got pretty creative for 11 year olds, seriously. And what did we get to do? Drop eggs off a building? Makes us look pretty weak-sauce...
"The outside temperature got down to about -60C but some of the teddy bears were kept as warm as -35C thanks to their spacesuits. Apparently they're all in good health now," Mr Moore told the BBC.
"I really enjoyed launching the teddy bear into space and I also enjoyed designing and building the teddy bear suit," said 12-year-old Kane Robbins.
And yes, I struggled with this because I desperately wanted to write Tediz (thanks a lot Conkers.)
Also in the news:
-Athens erupts in rioting after an incident which a police officer shot a boy after being accosted by a group of teenagers. The PM has declared a state of emergency after days of rioting. News of these events are barely making headlines in US papers, in contrast to the rioting that occurred in France not too long ago, despite eerie similarities.
Ekonomist's view
-Hero dog pulls friend to safety on a Chilean highway. Sadly, the other dog was already dead. This has to be the most heartbreaking story I've seen in a while. I won't provide a link, but this dog was truly heroic, braving traffic to save his friend.
-Another corrupt politician discovered in Illinois... no surprises here.
-Israel looks forward to a hawkish future with appointments in Likud Party. This is great, they totally need a more militant outlook on the world, especially with all of the rhetoric about Iran plotting single-mindedly to destroy Israel.
-More than a thousand officials of the new EU-led mission in Kosovo, EULEX, took over responsibilities from UNMIK early on Tuesday (December 9th). Spokesman Victor Reuter says about 1,400 members of the mission are spreading throughout the province, and in a few months, when the mission becomes fully operational, it will include 1,900 international and 1,100 local staff. About 100 members of EULEX will deploy immediately in the Serb-dominated north.
So, the Balkans are still extremely shaky, even Greece. Israel is going to become more obsessed with Iran. The Brits are sending teddy bears into space. And a dog proves once again that canines are better than us. Interesting newsweek...
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