A Poem by Amber – Written by You
I’m Amber and I’m 14 years old. I love reading, writing, drawing and basically anything creative! When I’m older I want to be a freelance journalist – I think that would be quite fun! I like reading YA and my favourite authors are Suzanne Collins, J.K Rowling, Luisa Plaja and Cathy Cassidy.
My Teen and YA Book Review Blog The Mile Long Bookshelf The Mile Long Bookshelf Facebook page.
@MileLongBookS on Twitter.
Featured Image NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center
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.
Rock, Paper, Scissors… Robot???
The game rock-paper-scissors is well known around the world. We’ve all used it as a choosing method, or simply as a game! The easiest version is played between two people. Both players choose one of the three shapes for one of their hands, and reveal their choice at the same time, hoping their choice beats their opponent.
It’s nearly impossible to gain an advantage over your opponent, unless you wait long enough to identify their choice before you make yours, but the chances are that they will realise your cunning plan and call you a cheater!
This game is not simply a choosing game. There are mathematicians dedicated to constructing algorithms for the best strategy to win, and scientists devoted to creating unbeatable robots! In fact, researchers at the University of Tokyo have created a rock paper scissors robot that wins at rock-paper-scissors 100% of the time.
Can You Catch a Cold from Cold Weather?
