October 9, 2009
Obama Wins Nobel Peace Prize
The President heard the surprise news when he woke up this morning
By Jonathan Rosenbloom
In a surprise announcement this morning, President Barack Obama was named the winner of the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. The prize is one of the highest honors given to an individual or a group. The announcement was made in Oslo, Norway, headquarters of the prize committee.
CHARLES DHARAPAKPObama met with the leaders of Israel and the Palestinian Authority in September.
The Nobel Committee said that Obama's efforts to make the world a better place were the reason for the award. They said that the President's goals to reduce the world's supply of nuclear weapons, to improve relations with Muslim countries and to increase the U.S. role in dealing with climate change made him the best candidate for the award. There were 172 other people nominated for the prize.
"I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many [important people] that have been honored by this prize," Obama said. "I will accept this award as a call to action, a call for all nations to confront the challenges of the 21st century."
The Norwegian Nobel Committee's chairman, Thorbjoern Jagland noted: "Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future."
A Big Surprise
The award was a total surprise to the President, who was asleep when the announcement was made. (Oslo time is six hours ahead of Washington, D.C.) White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Obama heard the news when he woke up before 6:00 this morning. The Norwegian Nobel Committee decided not to let Obama know before they made the public announcement. "Waking up a president in the middle of the night isn't something you do," Jagland said.
Since 1901, scientists and scholars have been awarded Nobel Prizes for their outstanding achievements in science, literature and peace. The Nobel Prize was named for Swedish dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel. He left almost all of his fortune to help set up the prizes. In his will, Nobel said that he wanted the prizes to be awarded to those who have had the "greatest benefit to mankind." Since then, the award committee has gone beyond peace in awarding the prize. Now it includes people and groups who are making efforts to fight poverty, illness and environmental issues.
Until Obama's win, the last U.S. President to receive the prize while in office was Woodrow Wilson in 1919. The other was Theodore Roosevelt who was given the award in 1906. Former President Jimmy Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, more than 20 years after he left office.
Michael-This time America president-Barack Obama wins the Nobel Peace prize. President Obama had a surprise, because when the announcement made it was in the middle night of America so President Obama was still asleep. The Nobel prize is a great honor to give to a person. Make the world a better place was the reason why President Obama got the Nobel Peace prize. I think that people who can get Nobel prizes are really geniuses. A lot of people have got the Nobel prizes. Maybe someday, we will might get the Nobel Prize.
2009年10月9日 星期五
2009年10月7日 星期三
Saturn's Super-Sized Ring
Saturn's Super-Sized Ring
NASA scientists discover a huge new ring around Saturn
By Suzanne Zimbler
When you think of Saturn, you probably picture a planet surrounded by colorful rings. For years, Saturn was known to have seven main rings. But on Tuesday, NASA scientists announced that they had spotted an eighth.
NASA/PA/APSaturn's never-before-seen ring is the largest in the solar system.
This never-before-seen ring is not only Saturn's biggest. It is also the largest in our solar system. "This is one super-sized ring," said Anne Verbiscer, one of the astronomers who worked on the study. According to scientists, the ring is so huge that it would take one billion Earths to fill it.
Seeing Rings
Four hundred years ago, Galileo got the first glimpse of Saturn's rings using his telescope. NASA scientists also used a telescope to spot the new ring. The Spitzer telescope, launched in 2003, orbits the sun while taking pictures of faraway objects in space.
The new ring is almost invisible to the human eye. But the Spitzer telescope can detect the glow of extremely cold objects, such as the giant ring, which is minus 316ºF. "By focusing on the glow of the ring's cool dust, Spitzer made it easy to find," said Verbiscer.
Made of Moondust
NASAScientists think the giant ring is made up of dust from Saturn's moon Phoebe.
The colossal hoop circles Saturn from a distance of eight million miles. It is 50 times farther away from Saturn than the planet's other rings. It also has a completely different tilt.
The giant ring is made up of a thin layer of dust. Scientists think the dust comes from Saturn's moon Phoebe. Why? Phoebe orbits within the ring. Its dents and marks make it clear that Phoebe has been hit many times by space rocks and clumps of ice. Each time Phoebe is hit, dust flies into space and goes into orbit, adding particles to the giant ring.
Moon-Made Mystery
The discovery of the new ring may also provide scientists with an answer to a mystery. Another of Saturn's moons, lapetus, has a bright side and a very dark side. Scientists have long wondered why. With the discovery of the new ring, they now believe that dust from the giant ring is moving toward Saturn and slamming into lapetus.
"Astronomers have long suspected that there is a connection between Phoebe and the dark material on lapetus," said scientist Douglas Hamilton. "This new ring provides convincing evidence of that relationship.
Michael-Saturn has big rings around it. Many big planets have rings. Such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, they all have rings around it. This time, NASA had found a big ring around Saturn. The ring of Saturn is also the largest ring in our solar system. It takes one billions of Earths to fill it. The ring is very hard to see. It is almost invisible. Scientists use special telescope to see the ring. I think if I can go to space I would like to go to visit Saturn. I want to see that ring with my eyes. Maybe some other days we will might see that Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune or other planets also have big rings around it.
NASA scientists discover a huge new ring around Saturn
By Suzanne Zimbler
When you think of Saturn, you probably picture a planet surrounded by colorful rings. For years, Saturn was known to have seven main rings. But on Tuesday, NASA scientists announced that they had spotted an eighth.
NASA/PA/APSaturn's never-before-seen ring is the largest in the solar system.
This never-before-seen ring is not only Saturn's biggest. It is also the largest in our solar system. "This is one super-sized ring," said Anne Verbiscer, one of the astronomers who worked on the study. According to scientists, the ring is so huge that it would take one billion Earths to fill it.
Seeing Rings
Four hundred years ago, Galileo got the first glimpse of Saturn's rings using his telescope. NASA scientists also used a telescope to spot the new ring. The Spitzer telescope, launched in 2003, orbits the sun while taking pictures of faraway objects in space.
The new ring is almost invisible to the human eye. But the Spitzer telescope can detect the glow of extremely cold objects, such as the giant ring, which is minus 316ºF. "By focusing on the glow of the ring's cool dust, Spitzer made it easy to find," said Verbiscer.
Made of Moondust
NASAScientists think the giant ring is made up of dust from Saturn's moon Phoebe.
The colossal hoop circles Saturn from a distance of eight million miles. It is 50 times farther away from Saturn than the planet's other rings. It also has a completely different tilt.
The giant ring is made up of a thin layer of dust. Scientists think the dust comes from Saturn's moon Phoebe. Why? Phoebe orbits within the ring. Its dents and marks make it clear that Phoebe has been hit many times by space rocks and clumps of ice. Each time Phoebe is hit, dust flies into space and goes into orbit, adding particles to the giant ring.
Moon-Made Mystery
The discovery of the new ring may also provide scientists with an answer to a mystery. Another of Saturn's moons, lapetus, has a bright side and a very dark side. Scientists have long wondered why. With the discovery of the new ring, they now believe that dust from the giant ring is moving toward Saturn and slamming into lapetus.
"Astronomers have long suspected that there is a connection between Phoebe and the dark material on lapetus," said scientist Douglas Hamilton. "This new ring provides convincing evidence of that relationship.
Michael-Saturn has big rings around it. Many big planets have rings. Such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, they all have rings around it. This time, NASA had found a big ring around Saturn. The ring of Saturn is also the largest ring in our solar system. It takes one billions of Earths to fill it. The ring is very hard to see. It is almost invisible. Scientists use special telescope to see the ring. I think if I can go to space I would like to go to visit Saturn. I want to see that ring with my eyes. Maybe some other days we will might see that Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune or other planets also have big rings around it.
2009年10月2日 星期五
High Speed Trains
981002 High Speed Trains - Michael
Trains are important transportation. Trains have changed a lot since they were invented. The first train was invented in 1804. By that time trains could only go 8km per hour. But at now there are a lot of trains can go 300km per hour or even more. Japan was the first country which built the world’s first high speed railway. Many countries include Korea, England, USA and Taiwan also have high speed railway. The HSR is a kind of fast train. It has a lot of advantages, although it is very expensive to build, but can help a country’s economy. It can also transport things in a fast way. But the most important advantage is that HSR produce less pollution than an airplane. We can take the HSR to produce less air and protect the earth. I think that HSR is a very fast transportation. Maybe there will be Maglev in Taiwan in the future. Maglev is a kind of train that goes on magnetic system. China and Germany have Maglev now. Maybe I will have a chance to take a ride on the Maglev.
Trains are important transportation. Trains have changed a lot since they were invented. The first train was invented in 1804. By that time trains could only go 8km per hour. But at now there are a lot of trains can go 300km per hour or even more. Japan was the first country which built the world’s first high speed railway. Many countries include Korea, England, USA and Taiwan also have high speed railway. The HSR is a kind of fast train. It has a lot of advantages, although it is very expensive to build, but can help a country’s economy. It can also transport things in a fast way. But the most important advantage is that HSR produce less pollution than an airplane. We can take the HSR to produce less air and protect the earth. I think that HSR is a very fast transportation. Maybe there will be Maglev in Taiwan in the future. Maglev is a kind of train that goes on magnetic system. China and Germany have Maglev now. Maybe I will have a chance to take a ride on the Maglev.
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