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Cruise Not The “Triumph” It Was Supposed To Be

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Everyone’s safe and sound now – and on dry land –but it’s a vacation that 4,000 people who took a Carnival cruise probably don’t consider a “triumph.”

It was supposed to be a four-day luxury cruise, from Texas to Mexico and back.

The Carnival Triumph cruise ship was in the Gulf of Mexico on Feb. 10 when a fire broke out in the engine room.

There were 3,143 passengers and 1,086 crew members on board.

The fire disabled the 14-story luxury liner’s engines and power generators.

That shut down the ship’s refrigeration, air conditioning and toilets.

The ship drifted at sea for five days, with no way to heat up food or flush the toilets. The ship was eventually towed to a dock in Mobile, Alabama.

A lack of fresh water, baby formula and clean washrooms were probably the biggest problems for the passengers. That, and boredom. Some of the passengers joined in on sing-a-longs and impromptu comedy shows to amuse themselves.

As the washrooms became dirtier and the un-air-conditioned cabins became stuffier, many passengers opted to sleep in the hallways or outside on the decks.

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News Science

King Richard III’s Bones Discovered Under A Parking Lot

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He was the king in Shakespeare’s play who uttered the famous words, “My kingdom for a horse!”

His name was Richard III, and he ruled as King of England from 1483 to 1485. He died in battle at age 32 at a place called Bosworth Field near Leicester (pronounced like “Lester”), England.

His body was buried by King Henry VII in a monastery (a place where monks live). Later, the monastery was destroyed and no one ever knew what became of Richard III’s bones.

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News Sports

Wrestling Likely To Be Dropped As An Olympic Sport

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The International Olympic Committee is planning to drop wrestling as an Olympic sport as of the 2020 Summer Games.

Some countries will feel the loss more deeply than others.

Many Iranians view wrestling as their national sport.

The governments of Iran and the United States don’t normally agree on much. In fact, they are currently in a major disagreement about weapons.

But they are standing together on the issue of wrestling. They both want it put back in the Olympics, and they are willing to work together to make it happen.

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News Science

Meteorite Lands In Russia

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Hundreds of people can walk by your front door every day.

The only time you may notice someone, however, is when they knock. Last week, the universe knocked on Earth’s door.

Thousands of asteroids and meteoroids streak pass planet Earth every year. Some of them enter Earth’s atmosphere where most of them simply burn up—those are called meteors. Any that land on Earth are called meteorites.

When a meteorite landed in the city of Chelyabinsk, Russia last Friday, the world took notice. That’s because it was a particularly large meteorite; one chunk was about the size of a van.

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News

Belgium To Issue Chocolate-Flavoured Stamps

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People who are sending mail from Belgium will soon have a special treat to add to their package—chocolate-flavoured stamps.

The country’s postal service, BPost, is issuing half a million stamps that smell and taste like chocolate. The glue on the stamp will taste like chocolate. The varnish on the picture will smell like cocoa.

Belgium is a country in western Europe. It’s known for many things, including being host to the headquarters of the European Union.

It’s also known for producing some of the most delicious chocolate in the world.

There will be five chocolate stamp designs that celebrate chocolate in a number of forms including chocolate spread and sprinkles.

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Health

McDonald’s Answers Canadians’ Questions

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Have you ever wondered exactly what’s in a McDonald’s hamburger?

Or why the food at McDonald’s doesn’t look the same in the advertising as it does in the store?

Or whether McDonald’s food is good for you?

If so, you’re not alone.

McDonald’s has a website that posts questions answered by Canadians—and answers from McDonald’s staff.

Over the years the restaurant chain has taken a lot of heat for its food which tends to be fast, cheap and not necessarily always good for you.

However, it is everywhere. There’s hardly a city in North America—or the world—in which you can’t find a McDonald’s restaurant.

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Environment News Science

City Services Gearing Up To Battle Climate Change

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Cities need to watch the weather closely in the future to make sure that city services are always in good working order, according to a new report being studied by the City of Toronto.

That’s because the changing climate–including severe weather and warmer temperatures–may affect cities’ infrastructure. In this case, “infrastructure” refers to services that support the city, such as roads, public transit and energy plants.

The report, requested by the Toronto Environment Office, summed up the past 10 years of serious weather events in and around Toronto.

In the last decade, several records were broken due to the weather. For instance, there was one day in which there was an unusually high demand for power during a very hot summer. This kind of high demand can put a strain on the city’s ability to provide power.

An all-time record 409 mm (millimetres) of rainfall was set at Trent University during this time. Four hundred and nine millimetres is equivalent to 14 billion litres of water in five hours.

Also, in the past 10 years, Toronto had its earliest ever official heat wave.

These kinds of weather events will likely continue and could affect the infrastructure of Toronto and other cities.

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News

The Pope Steps Down

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In a historic move, the Pope has resigned his position as head of the Roman Catholic Church.

He is the first pope to resign in 600 years.

Pope Benedict XVI (Benedict the 16th) announced his decision on Monday.

He said he has been losing strength and can no longer perform the tasks required of him. He is 85 years old.

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News Science

Astronaut Chris Hadfield Debuts Song From Space

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Before he left for the International Space Station, Hadfield wrote a song with singer Ed Robertson.

It’s called I.S.S. (Is Somebody Singing?). ISS can also stand for “International Space Station,” which is fitting since the song is about what it’s like to leave the Earth and go into space.

Hadfield has done some incredible things during his time on the ISS. He has made his experience in space accessible to the people on Earth.

He has tweeted messages, conducted live media conferences, sent photos and kept people up-to-date on what the astronauts on the Space Station are doing.

What Hadfield is doing is unique. No astronaut has ever brought space so close to Earth before.

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News Sports

Canada Shining At Winter Sports – Including “Slopestyle”

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Downhill skier Erik Guay, from Mont Tremblant, Quebec, raced recently in Kitzbuehel, Austria.

The 3.3-kilometre course at Kitzbuehel is often referred to as “the Super Bowl of the ski season.”

Guay finished second, skiing just 0.13 seconds slower than the person who came in first. Because he came in second, Guay earned a spot on the “podium.” In skiing, “podiums” is an official statistic. It refers to coming in first, second or third.

Coming in second at Kitzbuehel earned Guay his 19th podium of his career. If he gets one more, he will be tied for the most podiums ever by a Canadian downhill skiier.

Guay is now preparing for the World Championships which take place on Feb. 10 in Austria.

Canada’s winter sports success continued in Aspen, Colorado at the Winter X Games.

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