Science, Nature and Tech

Charity Shop Shopping = Chopping

Do you want to save money and still look good? Do you want to be original but not so weird-looking people scatter when you approach?
We’ve already looked at the trend towards vintage clothes but how do you make sure you’re more chic than geek? Here’s my take on successful charity shop hopping. Perhaps you have some more you could add?

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Science, Nature and Tech

Why do we get Hiccups?

why do we get hiccups

Everybody gets hiccups (also sometimes spelt ‘hiccoughs’). Even when babies are still in the womb they hiccup, which can feel very odd to their mother! But why do we get them and how can you stop them?

What are Hiccups?

Hiccups are caused by the diaphragm (pronounced DYE-uh-fram). This is a large, dome-shaped muscle that sits at the bottom of your chest cavity, below your lungs. When we breathe in the diaphragm tightens, helping to pull air into the lungs, and when it relaxes it forces the air back out again. Sometimes the diaphragm becomes irritated and instead of tightening smoothly it does it in a jerky way, which makes air suddenly rush into your throat. This air is stopped when it hits the voice box and makes the opening between the vocal cords close very suddenly. This is what produces the sound of the hiccup.

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News & Politics, Popular

What is it Like to Be an MP?

What is it like to be an MP

In May 2015 life changed dramatically for 182 British people and their families, when they were elected Members of Parliament in the General Election.  We asked MP Kirsty Blackman, MP for Aberdeen North, how her life has changed since the election, and what it’s like to be an MP.

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Art & History, Language & Literature

What is a Malapropism?

You may not have had the term ‘malapropism’, but I am sure you know what a malapropism is when you hear it!  It is when you get one word mixed up for another and as a result change the meaning of a sentence completely.  

For example you might mean to say to your friend, “I’m bored, let’s go watch telly”, but what you actually say is, “I’m bored, let’s go eat telly”. 🙂 

What is a malapropism, and why does it have such a funny name?

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