RP142 The Large Hadron Collider

 RP142 The Large Hadron Collider

In Switzerland, in a huge tunnel deep underground, is a giant scientific instrument. It's called the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). It was built with the help of more than 10,000 scientists from over 100 different countries to help people learn more about how our world began.

The LHC was built to make different particles collide—crash into each other—at extremely high speeds. The LHC is so big (17 miles long) to allow the particles to build up as much speed as possible.

The particles this machine uses are called hadrons. They' re even smaller than atoms. Scientists believe that by smashing them into each other at high speeds, we can learn more about the Big Bang. The Big Bang is the name of a theory about how Earth was formed. The theory guesses that our part of the universe used to be only a few centimeters of hot space. Then, for some reason, this space began to expand and cool until it eventually became the vast, cold universe we now have. Scientists want to know why.

The LHC tries to recreate the Big Bang. It spins hadrons until they are moving at almost the speed of light. The great speed makes them very hot, like they would have been before the Big Bang. Then, when they collide, they produce a "soup" of other particles. Scientists are very curious about these other particles. They believe that studying the beginning of the universe can help them understand how the universe works now.

The LHC will also help scientists try to answer other questions, like "What is most of the universe made of?" and "What makes some things have weight?" We don't know if the LHC will actually provide answers, but for now, it's as close as we can get!

RP141 American Folk Art Traditions

RP141 American Folk Art Traditions

Folk art is different from fine art or high art. Folk means "of the people." It is art created by people who were not trained as artists. Folk art is often useful, rather than a piece to be admired. It can show what objects people used and valued in a particular time and place. Two objects that became American folk art are quilts and decoys.

A quilt is a large piece of fabric, usually meant to cover a bed. A typical type of American quilt is a piece quilt. Piece quilts are made by sewing different pieces of fabric into a pattern. Some patterns show stars; some show snowflakes. Some are simple, and some are very complex. Quilts were often made by women, either alone or in groups, and were often given as gifts. Beautiful, complex quilts were treasures that were passed down from parents to children in a family. African-Americans developed their own style of quilting, as did the Amish. African-American quilts sometimes tell stories, while Amish quilts are often plain and less colorful.

Another very typical American folk art object is the decoy. Decoys are objects made of wood that are painted and designed to look like ducks and other waterbirds. They were first used by Native Americans to attract live birds. The first English settlers learned the skill from the Native Americans. Though decoys were useful objects, some of them were painted very beautifully and realistically. Like most folk art, each decoy represents the region in which it was made. Decoys from different parts of America have different styles of carving and painting. They tell a story about their small part of the world, just as the quilts do. 

RP140 Bill Gates After Microsoft

 RP140 Bill Gates After Microsoft

Bill Gates is famous because of Microsoft, the incredibly successful computer company he founded. But what he has done since he left Microsoft may change the world even more.

Bill Gates's personal fortune was huge, and he thought he should give more of it to charity. Rather than give money to other charities, he and his wife decided to create their own. They created the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation(the Gates Foundation) in 1999. The Gates Foundation operates transparently, which means you can see how it spends its money.

The Gates Foundation has both global and American goals. In America, it wants to increase opportunities for education and access to technology. Around the rest of the world, it focuses on health care and poverty. The Gates Foundation uses business techniques to try to end poverty. It is sometimes criticized for these techniques. It invests its money in companies to earn more money, but critics say some companies it invests in at home actually cause problems in the countries they are trying to help.

The Gates Foundation also contributes to very important causes around the world. It supports medical organizations that provide vaccines to children, treat HIV/AIDS, and tackle problems like malaria and tuberculosis. It provides money for developing farming in poor countries, and helping after disasters like earthquakes. In the United States, the Gates Foundation works to get the Internet to public libraries, so everyone can use it. It also provides money for scholarships for poor students and supports projects to improve schools.

Bill Gates is one of the richest people in the world. It is only right for him to use some of his wealth to help other people. His foundation may help him use his money to make a serious impact on poverty and disease.

RP139 The Dancing Plants of Udon Thani

RP139 The Dancing Plants of Udon Thani

Yes, you read that right: plants that dance. It's true. I've seen them!

Udon Thani is a province in northeast Thailand. There are no big cities there and not as many tourist attractions as there are in other parts of the country. But there is one small plant nursery with one of the most amazing but little-known sights in the world: simple, green plants that look like common weeds.

These particular dancing plants are a hybrid of the Thani Gyrant and the Chinese Gyrant— the pure parents can't dance as well as their hybrid child. The scientific name of this type of plant is Codariocalyx motorius.

Let's go back to the dancing. Walk through the nursery, which is full of beautiful Thai orchids. Deep in the center of the nursery, surrounded by brighter, more eye-catching plants, is a row of these green weeds. These are the dancing plants. "Stand in front of them and sing," the nursery worker says.

At first it feels silly to sing to a plant. I sing quietly and shyly, and nothing happens. I think about leaving, but I make myself stay and sing longer. Slowly, the plants start opening and closing their little leaves. The longer and louder I sing, the more they move. When I stop, they stop. I test to see if my breath is making the leaves blow— nope. They' re moving because I'm making a sound. It's incredible to interact with a plant this way. It makes me think very deeply about the ways all living creatures are alive. Perhaps we' re more connected with the plant world than we think we are.

Why the plant dances is still mysterious— just another sign that we still have a lot to learn about our world. 

RP138 Sunscreen

 RP138 Sunscreen

Sunscreen or sunblock, SPF 15, SPF 60, UVA/UVB—sunscreen is covered with strange letters and numbers. Do you know how sunscreen really works?

First, let's define sunscreen. Sunscreen is different from sunblock: unlike sunblock, sunscreen allows some light to reach the skin. The ingredients in sunscreen filter some light, unlike those in sunblock, which block all of it. Some sunscreen ingredients absorb light and turn it into heat. Others bounce it off your skin. Different ingredients act on different kinds of light rays.

Let's move on to SPF. SPF stands for "sun protection factor" and tells you how much protection a sunscreen provides against UVB rays. The higher the SPF number, the more protection you get. Experts generally recommend SPF 15 or higher.

Most sunscreens don't protect against UVA rays. This is controversial: UVA rays don't cause sunburns, but they are linked to skin cancer. Many people feel safer blocking these rays, too, so they use broad-spectrum sunblock. On the other hand, sunscreen blocks UVB rays; however, we get vitamin D from UVB rays. Blocking too many of them can be unhealthy.

Choose your sun protection, and then use it correctly. Experts recommend putting sunscreen on 15-30 minutes before you go out into the sun. Some recommend reapplying sunscreen every hour or so after that. Others say you should reapply 30 minutes after going out into the sun, but then leave it alone unless you sweat or swim. An average adult in a swimsuit should use about an ounce of sunscreen for his or her whole body. About one-quarter to one-third of a teaspoon is enough for the face.

Using sunscreen correctly can be the difference between healthy or unhealthy skin. Think about what you want, and get the right sun protection for you.

RP137 Cyberbullying

RP137 Cyberbullying

With the Internet, our friends are nearby even when they aren't. Unfortunately, while the Internet allows us to stay close to our friends, it can also make us more vulnerable to our enemies.

Bullying has always been a problem in schools. Big kids pick on smaller kids; rich kids make fun of poor kids. But nowadays, kids are being bullied even at home, where they should be safe. Cyberbullying, which means bullying people over the Internet, is a serious and growing problem. And since the Internet is always on and always available, victims of cyberbullying can feel like nowhere is safe.

Cyberbullying often occurs on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Bullies post cruel comments on their victim's pages, or send them mocking or threatening messages. Rumors spread quickly online, so it can be hard for victims to defend themselves. Sometimes other people join in on the attacks. People seem to be more willing to join in attacks online than they would be in person. In the end, victims can feel as if their whole class or school has turned against them. It's a very lonely and frightening feeling.

Studies show that over half of US schoolkids have experienced bullying online. Just one in ten of them will tell his or her parents about it. And less than 20 percent of these incidents will be reported to the police.

Cyberbullying is very dangerous. There have been several instances of teenagers committing suicide because of it. It is also largely invisible, which makes it hard to identify and even harder to stop. Many countries have passed laws against cyberbullying. Whether these laws will help end this crime for good remains to be seen. 

RP136 Asperger's Syndrome

RP136 Asperger's Syndrome

Adam is very, very smart. He has an excellent memory and astonishes people with the information he can recall. But he didn't have many friends at school—he couldn't figure out how to have a conversation. When was it his turn to talk? When should he stop? What did it mean when people's faces changed expression? He couldn't understand these things.

Wendy has always hated loud sounds. Light also bothers her, and she only likes to wear very soft clothes. She loved learning about insects, animals, and medicine, but hated school, where she was bullied.

Wendy and Adam have Asperger's syndrome. It's a type of autism, a disorder that still hasn't been well understood. We don't know why some people develop it. We' re only now learning how to help people with autism and Asperger's interact with the world. Preventing the disorder—let alone curing it, which is controversial—is still far in the future.

People with Asperger's generally seem more normal than other autistic people. They learn well, can speak normally, and are usually very smart. Social interaction is their problem. It is hard for them to read body language and understand social rules, like when to talk. People with Asperger's may not understand small talk, but may ramble on about a particular interest whether or not their listeners care. How to move can also be a problem; they may not use normal eye contact, or they might require more space than other people. They may not seem emotional or affectionate.

People with Asperger's do feel, of course. They just show it differently. They think differently than most people, but they think deeply and carefully. Our challenge for the future will be to learn to understand each other, so we can use all of the different gifts different people are given.