Current Events reading 30 June

Article comprehension

1. How many years has the 'Worlds Ugliest Dog' contest been around? How many contestants did it attract this year? 

The 'world ugliest dog' competition has been around for 26 years. It started in the year 1988. The competition is held in Santa Rosa, California. This year the competition attracted 29 dogs.

2. How did this year's winner Peanut get his 'ugly' looks? 


This years winner Peanut was severely burnt, causing him to lose his eyelids, lips and most of his body hair. As a result his eyes constantly water. With his lips being burnt off, you can see his teeth, which gives you an ominous looking dog.

3. What is the  organisers main purpose for organising this unusual competition?

The organiser thinks that this is a good way to honour the dogs and most of them are the aftermath of human abuse. This is a good way to make us see what we do to the dogs. This also raises the awareness for their adoption by showing that physical damage does not mean that they will not be loving and loyal.  Before the competition they vet the dog to ensure they are healthy enough to take part. There is the best looking dog competition, so why not have the opposite?

Critical thinking.

Do you think this is an appropriate title for this competition? What would you change it to?

I think that the name is appropriate for the competition, but they could change it. The reason is that, some of the dogs in these competitions aren't that ugly or deformed. I don't know what I would name it, but it wouldn't be the worlds ugliest dogs. Maybe something like 'Worlds Unusual Dogs' as that is not offensive, but still has an appropriate name.

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Article

Current Events reading 25th June

Article comprehension.

1. What is so special about Migaloo?

Migaloo is a white humpback whale. The people of Australia have given him an aboriginal name. The called him Migaloo which means "White Fella." Migloo was given his own status as "a special interest whale" The means that people can not get too close to Migaloo. Migaloo's skin condition is not seen very often and they still don't know why it is caused or what causes it. They think that it has something to do with a genetic condition. Migaloo is also the first documented white whale. Scientist say that Migaloo is 26 as Migaloo was first notified in 1988.  Migaloo is precious because Migaloo is the first documented white whale. They protect him because a white whale is unusual and to have spotted one so close to the coast of Australia. Migaloo has many fans who have created Facebook pages and Twitter accounts. If you go beyond 500 meters within Migaloo you will have a large fine of $12,500 AUD.

2. Cite a few facts from the article that tell you how precious Migaloo is to the people of Australia.

"On the 19th June, a group of animal lovers on a whale watching cruise off of the coast of Sydney, were treated to a rare sight- a pod of whales that included Migaloo, the world first documented white humpback whale."

"Over the years, Migaloo's fans  have also built several websites dedicated to his every move and even set up Facebook pages and Twitter account in his honour."

"Even though fans keep their eyes peeled for this white whale every year, they are not always successful in spotting the elusive mammal."

"Migaloo, which means "White Fella" in the indigenous Australian language."

"Not surprisingly he became an instant local darling and was immediately elevated to to the status of "special whale" which means that boast and jet skis have to keep a distance of 500 meters, while aeroplanes have to be more than 2000 meters away from the mammal.

3. Why is Migaloo known as "Hypo-Pigmented" humpback? Is he the only one?

Migaloo is known as the "Hypo-Pigmented" humpback because scientist have been unable to confirm what the cause of Migaloo's colouring. So they call him the "Hypo-Pigmented" humpback whale.

Migaloo is not the only white whale. In September 2011, Alan Fewings and his family spotted a white calf among a migrating pod. They spotted the white whale calf near Cid Harbour, near the coast of North Queensland. Experts think that the two whales are related but given that Migaloo junior has not been since that day, and so they can't confirm it.

Critical Thinking

Do you think that Migaloo's colour helps or hurts him from human predators? Why?

I think that his colouring helps him as if he get harmed or someone gets too close to him they will get a large fine. If they kill him they will get an even larger fine. People will be able to identify him as he is a rare find and the other white whale has not been seen. His colour could also make him more of a target as he will be easier to see and more and more people are attracted to him. He has many fans, but he will also have people that want to harm or kill him. His popularity has it's disadvantages and it's advantages.


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Article

Current Events reading 19th June

Article Comprehension

What cereal does Rosado use to create her portraits?

Rosado uses cornflakes. She thought of using corn flakes whilst eating breakfast and listening to oldies R&B music.

Why does it take so long to create each masterpiece?

First Rosado sketches the design, then she painstakingly crushes all of the cornflakes to the perfect size. She then uses a pin to shape and design the eyes, nose and mouth.

Name some celebrities that have featured in her cereal art series. What kind of art did Rosado unveil in 2013?

Rosado has done many masterpieces of Michael Jackson the king of pop, Bob Marley Reggae legend, Alicia Keys R&B singer and former Beatle band member John Lennon. In 2013 Rosado unveiled a masterpiece made out dirt. The picture was of a girl on a swing, hanging off a tree.

Critical thinking.

Why do you think the artist picked Cornflakes and not any other cereal? Can you think of any other everyday food that could be used to create art? 

I think Rosado picked cornflakes because it is easy to use, you can break the pieces up. Rosado might have also used Cornflakes because no one else has and she was aiming to be different, and come up with something new. I think a good food to use for art would be almond nuts because you can break them, and they have a good shape.

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Article

Current Events Wednesday 18th June

Article comprehension

1. Where was the most recent tallest lego structure built? Who built it?

The lego tower was built in Budapest by official lego builders from Denmark and an elementary school.

2. What were the two requirements imposed by the Guinness World Records before a lego tower can be eligible for inclusion. 

The first one was that it had to be standing still, without wires. The other one is there is to be no adhesive on any of the bricks, they must be on their own, and able to pull apart.

3. Why does the author believe that a new lego tower world record will be broken soon?

Lego is an easy thing to get your hands on, so anyone can attempt this. All they need is a couple thousand lego blocks, a crane and patience. Many people attempt world records and ones that they can access easily they will try. The lego tower records have been broken 3 times in 2012 alone.

Critical thinking

What in your opinion make building "the world's tallest lego structure" so important.  

In my opinion building the world tallest lego structure is not important. It is cool that they managed to make a lego structure this big, I have tried to make a semi-tall lego tower and have never been able to make it over 5 cm. It would have taken a lot of dedication and I am inspired by the amount of effort they put in.


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Article 

Current Events reading Tuesday 17th June

Article comprehension 

What is unusual about the reptiles at Nyanyana Farm?

The crocodiles at Nyanyana farm are vegetarians, which is unusual because crocodiles in the wild are carnivorous, but the crocodiles in Nyanana farm are herbivorous. They don't attack other animals, as they are not interested. Another thing that makes them unusual is that they sleep most of day. This makes them mellower and cost a lot less. Them being vegetarian also made their skin softer, which is better to sell. They also sleep a large portion of the day, which makes it easier than clean and maintain the enclosure. The crocodile skin also goes to company such as Gucci and Hermes.

How did they turn this way?

The crocodiles becoming vegetarian was a mistake. The company found it impossible to find food for the 164,000 crocodiles as Zimbabwe had a food crises, so they turned to pellets that had vegetables and meat. They observed the crocodiles and found out that the change in diet did not seem to harm the growth and health of the crocodiles. They then completely cut out the meat, and raised the crocodiles on vegetable pellets. 

What are the crocodiles being bred for? 

The crocodiles are being bred for their skin, to sell off to well known fashion companies to be crafted into belts, handbags and shoes. The skin is also sent to european Tanneries where it is changed into leather, then shipped off to companies that use leather.

Critical thinking.

How do you feel about the crocodiles being bred for their skin? Is it different from breeding cows or chickens that are killed for their meat? Why?

I feel that this is both a bad idea and a good idea. The reason I think that this is a bad idea is, humans don't need leather, but we still take it. The good part of this is that at least we are waiting for them to reproduce and grow older. If we were that mean to just kill them, without them reproducing then that is when a problem forms. The way they are doing it is fine (not saying I hate the idea of killing them just for looks) as they are waiting for them to grow old. I do hate idea that humans are taking a life for fashion, for looks.

Article

Current Events reading Monday 16th June

1. What did Malavath do? Why does the author believe it is so admirable? Because she is the youngest person to scale Mount Everest. 
2. What did she have to do to get selected for the Mount Everest climb?Malavath had to take pass a training course.  What happened when Malavath reached the advanced base camp? She hoisted the flag of India. 
3. How long did it take the team to get to the summit?It took 52 days to get to the top.  What does Malavath hope her achievement will do to help other people? Malavath hopes that her achievements inspire unprivileged girls. 

Aticle

Ramona and Robo

I looked at my creation. Happiness spread over me. He lived. I thought he had not, I thought I had failed. But no. I got up, using the hand at support. I walked over to my old station, the controls broken to bits. I picked up my tools and walked back to the robot. I undid the bolts and re did them up, tightening them. When I had done this to all of the bolts, the robot looked at me. I turned, heard a noise that startled me. I dismissed the noise and went to the controls. I looked up, my robot slowly collapsing. I ran over to my robot grabbing it’s hand, tears streaming down my face.

I tried to save him, but he shook his head every time I went near him. I ran up to it, hugging him. I worked so hard for nothing. The lightbulb eyes screamed into life. I looked up, His hands picked me up and I jumped on top of his head. He opened his mouth, like her was trying to say something. That is the one thing I forgot about. I climbed back down, he opened up the door to his controls. I scrambled inside. I changed a few things around, and made an incision for his mouth. As I was working on him, the thought of him saving me had finally hit me. I had just furthered robot engineering. I was an inventor, my name will be on plagues, and so will his. Ramona and Robo are going to be the most famous names in history.