Martin Luther King Jr

       Martin Luther King Jr

Martin Luther King Jr is famous for his well-known speech “I have a dream”. He was also famous for leading a non-violent protests to fight for the rights of the Afro -Americans for equality. He is one of the greatest speakers in American History.

Martin Luther King Jr was a Civil Rights Leader born in 15th January 1929 Atlanta, Georgia, USA. He had 2 siblings; a younger brother and a older sister. Martin’s dad was a preacher and his mother was a teacher. He studied in Booker T. Washington High School. He was so smart in every subject that he skipped 2 grades and started his college education at the age of 15. After when he got his Bachelors degree in sociology, Martin got another degree for Divinity from Crozer Seminary and then later on, he got his Doctoral degree in Theology in Boston University. In 1953, Martin got married to Coretta Scott King and together they had 4 children; Yolanda, Martin III, Dexter and Bernice.

In Martin’s first Civil Rights major action, Martin was in a Montgomery Bus Boycott. This was when Rosa Parks didn’t want to give her seat to a white person. So on, Martin led a Boycott of the public Transportation System. The Boycott took over a year and it was very strict at times of this. During this time, Martin was arrested and his house was bombed just for this incidence that happened in the bus. In 1963, Martin helped organize the famous march in Washington D.C. Over 250,000 people went to the march in a good way to show the importance of Civil Rights legislation. After marching, Martin read and gave his “I have a dream” speech. This speech became one of the best speeches in world history. The march and Martin’s speech was a great success. In 1963, Martin was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize from Gunnar Jahn in Oslo. He was the youngest person to be awarded this prize. When Martin was offered company at a hotel in Memphis, Tennessee, Martin was going to a meeting in the morning. When he was going, Martin was assassinated while standing on the balcony of the hotel in the room. He was shot by a criminal named James Earl Ray at 4th April 1968. Martin was rushed to St Joseph’s Hospital and was in the operating room at 6:00. They opened up his chest to see if they could see the bullet, but nowhere was to be seen. His family was told  that Martin was dead at the time 7:05. In every 3rd Monday of January, there is always a national Holiday called Martin Luther King Jr Day in America. Hundreds of thousands attend this special holiday.

Martin Luther King Jr’s Quote:

“Non-violence means avoiding not only external physical violence but by also internal violence of spirit. Not only do you refuse him to shoot a man, but refuse to hate him.”

By: Raheal Mengistu

Life on dairy farm

When a pregnant cow is giving birth , they lie down or stand up. After the mother gives birth, the calf is born. It usually pops out quickly out of the mother’s stomach. The calf is taken away from the mother and it is placed in a warm shed where other young calves are.

In the shed, the calves are always hungry. Some calves are greedy and want to be first to drink more milk than the other calves. As calves get older, they nibble on grass and mostly fed less milk. They also drink clean, fresh water.

Young calves have tiny horns. There horns are removed or disbudded by a hot iron. Cows are given injection to prevent infection. The calves will not grow sharp, dangerous horns because it is dangerous while playing with other calves. After the horns are removed, they can play happily in the field with other calves.

The farmers keep the best female calves for the best milking cows. Calves that are milked are called heifer and then kept as dairy cows. Each cow makes about 20,000 litres of milk. Farmers kill male cattles that makes beef. They save the best bull for breeding.

When getting milk from cows, people use machines and one person could make 650 cows in 2 hours. One person that uses hands to get milk makes about 12 cows in 2 hours.

About 35 million litres  of milk a day are nearly produced by cows in New Zealand.

By: Raheal Mengistu

Southern Lights

     Southern Lights

Southern light known as a Aurora is a natural light that can be easily seen in the sky. When the Southern Lights occur around the Earth, the colours usually change because of the oxygen that cause it in space. The oxygen usually produces green or red colours and the nitrogen produces blue and red also. These colours can combine to produce different colours such as purple.  The word Aurora means “Roman goddess of dawn”. It was named after an Italian scientist, Galileo Galilee. Another meaning for it in Greek which means in English “wind of north”. Aurora is caused by collision of charged particlesof atoms in the high thermosphere and atmosphere of the earth. Auroras can also take place in other planets in the solar system, for example; Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Mars. The southern lights can also be seen in the Antarctic, areas in Tasmania, and southern parts of New Zealand.

Here is a legend I want to share with you about southern lights: snce Tama-rereti was a child, he was so interested in the stars. One evening, as he lay his back watching the beautiful, shining stars, the night quickly became alive with the colours green, blue, and crimson lights that danced and jumped across the southern sky. Tama-rereti became more interested. As he grew older and became a powerful chief, he decided to build a big waka and sail south in it to find where the southern lights came from.

By: Raheal Mengistu

Where does wool come from?

             Why are sheep important and how do they help man?

There are about 7 times more sheep than people in New Zealand that is around 31 million sheep. Wool is very strong and it is measured in microns. The higher the number of microns, the stronger the wool. A single wool’s fiber is stronger than steel of the same diameter. Every home has wool in it and because it doesn't burn easily, it is very safe. It takes less than 2 minutes for a professional shearer to shear a sheep. The world record is 30 seconds (naturally set by a New Zealander). Sheep are shorn so the fleece comes off in one piece. N.Z is one of the top 3 wool-producing countries in the world exporting 130,000 tonnes a year. Wool is long lasting which means that wool can bend back to 20,000 times without breaking. Together, cotton fibers can only bend up to 3200 times. Wool can be extended up to 70% of its natural length and when the tension is released, it returns to its natural length. Llama wool as well could make clothes too.

By: Raheal Mengistu

My wild-self

My name is Raheal and I want to share what my wild self is. I have monarch butterfly wings, domestic rabbit ears, a peacock crest, anaconda snake tongue, Grevy’s zebra hooves, and a seahorse tail. I live in Central park zoo, New York. I have a lot of friends that I can’t name all. This is everything about me.

Peacock crest- I have a crest of feathers on top of my head. Other peacocks have this as well.

Domestic rabbit ears- Animals like rabbits have to be on the lookout for danger all the time. My large ears can help me listen for trouble.

Anaconda snake tongue- My snake tongue can smell with its tongue. Its forked anaconda tongue collects sent molecules from the air and it brings them back to tiny grooves in the roof of their mouth letting them “taste” the air.

Grevy’s zebra hoofs- I can get up and start running. I can stand up for 6 minutes after being born and can run after 45 minutes.

Pot bellied seahorse tail- My seahorse tail has a long, prehensile, tail which can curl around things such as seaweed to keep from being swept away by currents.

Monarch butterfly wings- My monarch butterfly wings can beat 5 times per second.

BY: Raheal Mengistu

The Lost Girl

There once lived a beautiful girl named April who her father owned a beautiful building that could fit all her family members. One sunny day when she was outside doing some exercise in the fresh air, an unknown stranger was walking by, and then suddenly he kidnapped her and he took everything that was owned by her. Not even a single thing was found by April’s things. The next few days later, the father was very worried about his daughter where she had gone. He was stressed out a lot. He called the police and asked them if they could help him find his daughter. But they didn't respond back  because they were not available and it was in the middle of midnight that time. He couldn't find any other ways to help finding his daughter. He kept, thinking, thinking, thinking………… AT LAST! He had another option. He hurriedly went to the living room and dialed the number. He called the CSI (criminal scene investigation)  because they were the only business that was available. The CSI were just on time and the father was pleased to see them to help him find his daughter. The father told everything about this mystery that had happened to his daughter. As the CSI had entered in the house, they had a lot of questions to ask him. They asked “Do you have security cameras?”. The father nodded his head “Yes”. When they entered the security room, the CSI were surprised because there were lots of people working there.  They checked the tape and saw the video where exactly April was exercising. When they saw the stranger pass, they stopped the tape and zoomed the picture. The father thought that this person was familiar. They had checked again, When they saw the last part, they saw that the stranger dropped something. The words were blurry on the computer screen because they couldn't read properly. They rushed outside and saw the card lying on the floor. They read it and this is what it said:

Address: 789 Hilton Avenue

Name: Wilson Blake

Number/mobile: 0214567893

The father looked confused. The father himself and the CSI drove to the address. As they got there, they knocked on the door three times. The door was open and the stranger was frightened because the was a lot of people at the doorway. The father asked “You must be Wilson Blake”. The stranger nodded his head “Yes”. When they entered the house, the father noticed a lot of things that belonged to April. The CSI went through all the rooms but they still hadn't found April yet. There was a garage next to the house. The stranger was at full speed he yelled at the father and the CSI “ Don’t you dare go in there!”. But they went in. Everyone gasped and they were terrified because they saw April tied up on a chair. Her legs, hands were tied up and a bandage was around her mouth. The CSI were so mad, they under arrested the stranger for 30 years. The father got April back home and everyone was so glad she was back.

By: Raheal Mengistu

  

Counting Lambs

Long time ago, just before we were even born, farmers wished that they could see inside their animals so that they could take good care of their animals. But from now on, they can. Isn't that amazing?

Ewes (female sheep) can be scanned using ultrasound in the same way that a mother is scanned to check that her baby is fine and healthy or if she is expecting twins. When the ewes have been pregnant for 2 months and the lambs are 3 months time, a scanning operator comes over to the farm. He brings special equipment for scanning with him. The operator fixes up the scanner under a very heavy black cover because otherwise the light from the sun makes it hard to see the screen clearly. The farmer and a helper chase the ewes up to the scanning operator. One at a turn, each ewe stands on a platform with her head held carefully so that she can’t get away. Ewes that have a stomach that is completely empty means that they are very hungry. After the ewe has given birth, the lamb is born and is fed milk from the mother.

By: Raheal Mengistu

In this world, there are many strange insects. Butterflies are one of them. They are wonderful creatures and have wonderful patterns that make the natural world beautiful.

A butterfly uses its knobs at the rounded part on the end of its antennae to smell with. Butterflies breathe tiny air holes which is placed along its side. The air holes are called spiracles.

Butterflies are cold-blooded but we humans are warm-blooded. This is why their temperature can be either cold or warm. If their temperature is too cold, they cannot be able to fly. It has to wait until the sun is up to warm its body and wings to fly.

Most butterflies have six legs however, the monarch butterfly has 4 legs.

The butterfly has a long tongue that’s like a drinking straw to suck up the nectar from the flowers. When its tongue is not been used, the tiny spring rolls it up.

Strange patterns on a butterfly’s wings can scare off predators. These “eye” patterns make the butterfly’s wings look like a large face.

A butterfly’s eye contains thousands of tiny lenses to help it see. Human beings only have one lens in each eye.  

A butterfly’s wings are covered with tiny coloured scales that overlap like tiles on roof. Brightly coloured wings warn birds not to eat the butterfly because it will taste bad.

When a butterfly comes out of its chrysalis, its wings appear tiny and crinkled. they expand as the butterfly pumps blood into its wing veins.

Butterflies are the most beautiful creatures but very strange as well.

By: Raheal Mengistu

Finding China

  Finding China

My name is Raheal Mengistu and I live in Auckland, New Zealand. When I was young, I had a very fun adventure travelling to Shanghai, China where I went to school for 6 weeks. How did I travel to China so well?

One day, my family and myself were talking to a family friend named Wallis, about her schooldays in China. In Auckland, the population is 1 million but in Shanghai, it is 14.35 million so I had a lot of people asking me about Auckland. One person even asked me “Do you know a movie called ‘Shanghai Knights’”? I remembered this movie was based with Jackie Chan, my favorite actor. At that time, I couldn't speak Chinese but I could understand a little. My parents had been always been telling me to learn and so….. I thought “Yes!” My parents were doubting a lot about this because I had never been far away from my parents before. How could I manage all this? And how would they manage? But the more I thought about it, the more I was excited. I didn't mind a lot about leaving my parents in the airport crying.

When I go to China, I went to my school. My school was called Ping-He Bilingual School. (Bilingual means 2 languages and they are used to teach in our school which is Chinese and English). It was a new school with new buildings, huge grounds and there were about 2000 people in the school. I was in a class with 12 girls. I’m short for my age, even in New Zealand and I felt like a small giant next to them. Most of the kids came from Shanghai. Sometimes, both of their parents worked in their job which was why the kids were boarded. Like I didn't have any siblings, none of them had siblings as well! China’s one child per family rule is very strict in the Chinese cities. We had a mum who looked after us. Like other parents, she could get very grumpy easily! When I was still in China, it was winter and very cold weather. At night, the temperature dropped to below zero. Luckily, the rooms were heated and I was at the end of the room away from the open window.  

The biggest embarrassment was the lack of privacy - there were no doors on the toilets or showers. But instead the showers had curtains which I was lucky. The girls I met at school were very kind and friendly. On my first night, everyone crowded around me. One girl named Sophie said “Can I be your friend?” That was one of the best things that ever happened to me in China. Sophie knew a little bit of English. She even taught me how to introduce myself in Chinese.

Before going to school, we had to be showered, dressed and ready for breakfast by 6:30 am. Class started at 7:00 and finished at 5:00. We had 1 hour for homework each night, so there wasn't much time for anything else. Chinese children worked a lot harder than I was used to working in New Zealand. There were 12 boys and girls in my class. We studied English, science, maths, PE, art, calligraphy, music and history. Apart from science and music, we were taught in an old-fashioned way. But I quite liked having goals set for me that I could work towards to a lot harder. Sometimes these day, we were given a book and told to memorize passages. We were punished if we didn't. Doing PE was not my favorite time! Each day we had to do 100 press-ups and a 100 sit ups and then they would tell us to run around the track 50 times. I was exactly a lot fitter by the time  I left New Zealand. There was a beautiful swimming pool which wasn't even heated but I didn't seem to care. The girls didn't like going to the deep end so I’d just played along with them instead of the deep end because I might drown. Sometimes being short could be a good or bad thing.

On the menus, I didn't like the food at all. It wasn't like the Chinese cooking I was used to back home. Breakfast was a steamed bun filled with vegetables and meat. Once, we had a salted duck egg which I didn't eat. For lunch, we’d have rice with cold prawns or pork and vegetables. Dinner would be soup, rice, vegetables, and meat in gravy. Sometimes we got a warm chocolate milk drink, and we had a banana and an orange each day. If I didn't like the food, I’d go to bed feeling hungry!

On the first week, I was very happy. Then the novelty wore off and I got terribly homesick. Everyone stared at me which made things go so worse. That’s the worst part of being short. I really missed my parents and friends, my dog, my cat, my chickens, my violin, the clean air. Well for sure, I missed everything! I was able to text people and I’d ring my Mum every day which really helped a lot. My Mum said that our toll bill was so big she could have bought the phone company.

Once I got over being homesick, I began to enjoy myself especially knowing it was a short time in China. What did I learn these past 6 weeks in China? Well, Chinese kids work a lot harder than us. They’re also more respectful to adults and teachers. Next time maybe you should go to China just like me!!!!!

By: Raheal Mengistu

   

      

Life of Marie Curie

    Life of Marie Curie

Marie Curie or also known as Marja Salomea Sklodowska was born in Warsaw, Poland. At that time, Poland was under control of Russia and so everyone especially Marie’s family was taught how to speak in Russian language. Her father was a pianist and a teacher and her mother was also a teacher. When Marie was young and studying in school, the teacher taught the children in the class Poland language secretly but when the principal came into the class, the kids pretended they were learning Russian language. Marie was very smart in all her learning so she skipped 2 grades and she was in a class with kids 2 years  older than her. When her father lost her job, the family became very poor and Marie strived hard to get back to the family back together. 2 years after her mother had passed away, Marie couldn't think of going to University because it was against the law of the land for girls to go to universities. But the only University in Europe that allowed women was Sorbonne University in Paris, France. In 1891, Marie arrived in Paris and started studying in Sorbonne University. In 1893, Marie had a maths degree and then a year later, she had a physics degree. Later on she had a doctor degree and she was the first woman to have a doctor degree. During when she was in class and the teacher was talking in French, she couldn't understand what he was saying because she didn't know French very much. Usually, she had a dictionary to translate the words and write them in Polish on her book and then she could understand. She worked as a researcher to a well-known physicist, Gabriel Lippmann. After when Marie graduated, a man named Pierre who was a French scientist asked her to marry him. So in 1895, Marie and Pierre got married and they both worked the same job together as one team. In 1898 during when they were working in the laboratory shed, a grain of something glowed. Marie and Pierre by this stage called it radium. They had produced pure radium but it was a very tiny amount which was about 0.19 of a gram. Until it was 1902, Marie had won 2 Nobel prizes which were the super Oscars  for science. She won them for discovering radioactive (the dangerous disease on  earth). Radioactive is not good for you but Marie and Pierre never knew that it was that bad. They were handling radioactive things such as radium and polonium with their hands. In 1906, Pierre got run over by a horse and a wagon and passed away. Marie was very sad so she continued on her science work through all her life. The teachers and professors were very sad about Pierre’s death so they asked Marie to take place of Pierre to be professor of physics and by that job, she was known as the first woman professor in France. In 1914, France opened the Radium Institute and put Marie in charge. During Marie’s research, she was always dizzy, tired, low-fever and she always had colds. For the rest of her life, she investigated the very innards of an atom to find out what it was, what it did and how it did. She also invented “nuclear medicine” using radiation to cure people and cancer. When World War I had started, Marie Curie put the institute's radium in a bank vault, then set about turning around motorcars into mobile X-ray units for finding bullets and broken bones in soldiers. After when the World War I ended, Marie’s hometown gained independence and she continued on her work. Marie published a book called “Radioactive Substances” which came as a great book to read. At the age of 66, Marie died on 4th July 1934 of radiation sickness called leukemia. A year after she died, her daughter, Irene had died the same reason as her mother. Marie was the first person to have radiation sickness in the world.

Marie Curie once said “Scientists in the laboratory are not mere technician, but also children confronting nature as though it is a fairytale.” 

There are 2 craters named after Marie Curie; one on the moon and the other on Mars. She is also on stamps throughout the world especially North Korea.

I conclude that Marie is the best scientist and should be alive today for creating the world beautiful and studying really hard to discover radium and polonium.

By: Raheal Mengistu