Posted: July 23, 2021

A queen and a robot walk up to a bridge. . . . No, it’s not the beginning of a joke. Dutch Queen Máxima teamed up with a small robot last week. The two unveiled a 3-D printed footbridge over a canal in Amsterdam, capital of the Netherlands.

Queen Máxima pushed a green button. It set the robot’s arm in motion to cut a ribbon across the bridge.

The 40-foot walkway is made of steel. It weighs six tons. It is decorated with swirls and flowing lines. Company MX3D used a 3-D printing technique that combines robotics with welding. (To learn more about bridges, read Bridge Basics.)

“If you want to have a really highly decorated bridge or really aesthetic bridge, suddenly it becomes a good option to print it,” Tim Geurtjens from MX3D says. “Because it’s not just about making things cheaper and more efficient for us. It’s about giving architects and designers a new tool. . . . they can rethink the design of their architecture.”

The structure will be loaded with sensors. Researchers will monitor the bridge. They will see how it reacts to people walking on it.

This footbridge is temporary. It will stay for two years. The bridge that previously spanned the canal is being renovated.

City councillor Micha Mos said the bridge could bring in more respectful tourists. The city wants to clean up the neighborhood, which is known for noisy parties.

“This may attract a new kind of visitor, one who is more interested in architecture and design,” he says.

A bridge connects two pieces of land that are separated. Jesus is our spiritual bridge—He connects us to God. “There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” — 1 Timothy 2:5

Posted: July 22, 2021

An 18-year-old pilot made a breathtaking emergency landing. He carefully set his small plane down in the middle of a busy road. The plane’s unexpected landing snarled traffic. Thankfully, there were no injuries. 

“I was just sitting there listening to music and having my morning coffee,” pilot Landon Lucas told WPVI-TV Philadelphia. The next thing he knew, his J-3 Piper Cub plane had complete engine failure.

Around 12:30 p.m., Landon Lucas reported the engine difficulties to aviation authorities. At that point, he was flying near Steel Pier in Atlantic City, say officials. Young Mr. Lucas was trailing an advertising banner through the air behind his plane.

First, Mr. Lucas released the banner into the ocean. Then he tried to fly to a nearby municipal airport. On his way to the airport, Mr. Lucas looked down at the Route 52 causeway road. (That busy bridge connects Ocean City and Somers Point, New Jersey.) He spotted a gap in traffic in the westbound lanes. The pilot made a quick decision.

“She’s going down, one way or another. I had the option of the water or the bridge, and I see a gap in traffic, [so, I decided] I’m going for it,” Mr. Lucas recalls. He carefully maneuvered his plane onto the bridge.

Witnesses watched Mr. Lucas land the plane without any problems. Officials say that the aircraft was not damaged. Imagine the phone call the young man made to his mother when he was safely on the ground. “Mom, you might want to check out the news. I had a little situation today,” he told her.

Posted: July 21, 2021

Finally! A year late, but here come the Olympics. The international, multi-sport games will kick off with the Opening Ceremony on Friday, July 23, in Tokyo, Japan. The games were postponed by a year while the world wrestled with the coronavirus pandemic. Now that they’re back on, spectators will notice quite a few rules in place. That’s because organizers want everyone participating in the games to stay safe.

About 15,000 athletes and nearly 70,000 officials, media, and other participants are in Tokyo for the games. For the next two weeks, those vaccinated athletes, volunteers, officials, and reporters will do their best to focus the world on sports, NOT the many new rules. 

Unlike other years, there will be no foreign fans at the games. Each athlete’s every move is being tracked to try to prevent more virus spread. All visitors must install tracking apps that will monitor their moves in the city. Participants can’t mingle with Japanese residents.

“It’s all based on the honor system, and it’s causing concern that media people and other participants may go out of their hotels to eat in Ginza,” says Takeshi Saiki, a lawmaker. It’s hard to make sure so many visitors in the country will obey the Olympic rules. But Japan’s leaders say everyone must cooperate in order for the Summer Games to be successful.

For their first 14 days in Japan, Olympic visitors may not use public transportation. They cannot travel anywhere that’s not pre-planned. They can’t even take a walk! Athletes are tested daily for the coronavirus. They must stay in the athletes’ village when they aren’t at a competition venue or training site.

Japan plans to keep monitoring everyone as they come and go at venues and hotels. “We will control every entry and exit. We will have a system that will not allow anyone to go outside freely,” says Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa.   

Security measures at the Olympics sound like a very big hassle. Some people are unhappy with all the rules. But on the bright side, these measures mean that the Olympic Games will go on. And that is something the world has been waiting for.

Posted: July 20, 2021

Homer and Ulysses are two Syrian brown bears. They lived in small concrete cages for more than 10 years in the country of Lebanon. But now they are coming to the United States. After a decade of captivity, the bears will have room to roam. Homer and Ulysses will live in a wildlife sanctuary soon.

A group called Animals Lebanon rescued the bears. The group says the two Syrian brown bears were living in bad conditions at a private zoo. Thankfully, the zoo owner agreed that the bears needed a better place than the small cages.

“No animal should have to live in such terrible conditions,” says Jason Mier. He is the director of Animals Lebanon. He says the bears did not have proper food or range. He also questioned their veterinary care. “For the first time in their life they can actually be bears, with large natural enclosures,” he explains. Mr. Mier says the bears soon will “enjoy their days.”

On July 18, workers sedated the bears. They gave both animals a quick medical check. Then they moved them into large metal transport crates. Animals Lebanon coordinated a ride for the bears to Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport. The bruins are in for a world tour! From the airport, the bears will hop on a plane to the United Arab Emirates. Next, they will fly to Chicago, Illinois. But that won’t be their final stop! From Chicago, the bears will get a ride to the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado. 

The Wild Animal Sanctuary cares for hundreds of animals. There are lions, tigers, bears, wolves, and more. Earlier, Animals Lebanon rescued a wallaby and a fox. The group re-homed them at the same place. In fact, Animals Lebanon has closed four below-standard zoos. It has helped move animals to sanctuaries in the United States, Great Britain, the European Union, and South Africa.

It has taken quite some time to rescue Homer and Ulysses. Twice over the past two years, something delayed the bears’ scheduled flight from Beirut. This week, everyone is celebrating. The Syrian bears are finally on their way to freedom!

Posted: July 19, 2021

(Hiccup!) Oh dear. Brazil’s president has a very bad case of the hiccups. He has been hiccupping for at least 10 straight days. President Jair Bolsonaro had to go to the hospital. Doctors want to figure out how to help him get rid of those pesky hiccups. He also had ongoing abdominal (tummy) pain.

First, President Bolsonaro went to the Armed Forces Hospital in the capital city of Brasilia. When doctors there couldn’t figure out how to stop the spasms of the leader’s diaphragm, they transferred him to a different hospital. He spent most of the weekend at the Hospital Nova Star in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo. That hospital says the president received “a conservative clinical treatment.”

President Bolsonaro had a belly injury three years ago during his 2018 presidential campaign. Since then, he’s struggled on and off with hiccups. Lately, the bothersome spasms have gotten worse. The president’s speech has been interrupted with the involuntary jerks. He’s said that he suffers from recurring hiccups.

“I apologize to everyone who is listening to me, because I’ve been hiccupping for five days now,” the president said in an interview on July 7. “I have the hiccups 24 hours a day.” The next day, President Bolsonaro apologized again during his weekly Facebook Live address. He was sorry for not being able to express himself well even still.

American Charles Osborne had hiccups for 68 years. According to Guinness World Records, he’s had more hiccups than anyone—ever. It’s estimated that he had 430 million hiccups! Mr. Osborne’s hiccups were a result of an injury in 1922. At first, he hiccupped around 40 times per minute. But over the years, the frequency slowed. Then, one year before his death, the spasms completely stopped. What a relief!

Doctors are taking care of Brazil’s president. They are doing their best to resolve the hiccup problem without surgery. Last week, in a 20-minute encounter with the president, supporters repeatedly asked him to look after his health. The doctors felt he was well enough to go home from the hospital on Sunday. They did not say whether the hiccups had stopped.

Posted: July 16, 2021

A goldfish the size of a football?! Minnesota officials have an urgent message: Stop dumping unwanted fish into ponds and lakes!

Officials say they’re catching more giant goldfish in waterways. The city of Burnsville, Minnesota, tested the water earlier this month. Workers found 10 fish in Keller Lake. Those “fish out of aquarium water” weren’t supposed to be there. But some people who don’t want their pet goldfish anymore have released them there.

On Monday, they found 18 more fish. Some were 18 inches long and weighed about four pounds. That’s about as heavy as five cans of Campbell’s tomato soup! In the wild, goldfish can grow much bigger than the one- or two-inch goldies in a tank at home.

Burnsville officials are working with Carp Solutions. That company develops new technologies for controlling carp, a larger cousin of goldfish.

The company uses boat electrofishing to capture the fish. Wires electrify the water. The stunned fish float to the surface. Workers can net and measure them.

Why reel them in? The goldfish compete with native fish species for food. They can make too much algae grow in lakes. That can kill other fish. Goldfish are native to east Asia. God put them there on purpose. In North America, they are an invasive species. They hurt the lakes and ponds.

“They grow bigger than you think and contribute to poor water quality by mucking up the bottom sediments and uprooting plants,” the city says.

Goldfish and carp can live without oxygen for long periods. That means they can even survive in frozen or dirty lakes. They also show up in healthier lakes. They “just keep swimming”—but the city needs to scale them back.

Posted: July 15, 2021

For the first time ever, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese is launching a limited-edition ice cream. A limited-edition . . . what? Ice Cream! Get ready for two favorite foods to come together. Who says macaroni and cheese and ice cream can’t mix?

Kraft Macaroni & Cheese is partnering with Van Leeuwen, an ice cream company based in Brooklyn, New York, to make the tasty treat. Van Leeuwen Ice Cream crafts delicious ice cream flavors. The company uses simple ingredients to churn up decadent desserts. Will Kraft Macaroni & Cheese flavored ice cream be a winner?

The masterminds behind the new confection think people will love it. They expect Kraft Macaroni & Cheese blended into sweet, creamy dairy to be the ultimate summer treat. The ice cream will have no artificial flavors, preservatives, or dyes. Can you just imagine a cool, creamy scoop of ice cream that brings the comfort of a warm bowl of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. Well, can you? Not there yet? (Neither are we.)

“We know that there is nothing more refreshing on a hot summer day than ice cream. That is why we wanted to combine two of the most iconic comfort foods to create an ice cream with the unforgettable flavor of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese we all grew up with,” says Emily Violett. She’s the Senior Associate Brand Manager for Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. “As big fans of Van Leeuwen, we knew they’d be the perfect partner to create this ice cream with us.”

Where can ice cream lovers get a scoop of the new flavor? The Kraft Macaroni & Cheese ice cream will be sold for $12 per pint at Van Leeuwen scoop shops and online starting this week. New Yorkers got to sample the ice cream for free at an ice cream truck stationed in Union Square yesterday. After all, July 14 was National Macaroni & Cheese Day.  

Posted: July 14, 2021

Space tourism is becoming a reality. Billionaire Richard Branson hurtled into space on Sunday. He was aboard his very own winged rocket ship named Unity.

Mr. Branson and five crewmates reached an altitude of 53.5 miles over the New Mexico desert. The flight was quick. The space plane went straight up to space and then came back down after just three to four minutes. But the crew got to feel weightlessness. They saw the way the Earth curves.

“The whole thing, it was just magical,” exclaimed Mr. Branson, as he glided home on the gleaming space plane. Mr. Branson’s space company is called Virgin Galactic. It plans to start taking paying customers to space next year.

Mr. Branson is the first person in the world to launch in his own spaceship. His space trip landed just nine days before another billionaire will launch out of this world. Read more about Jeff Bezos’ upcoming space trip here: Billionaire to Space. A good sport, Mr. Bezos congratulated Mr. Branson on his flight on Twitter. He added, “Can’t wait to join the club!”

About 500 people watched Unity as it was carried away from Earth by a larger aircraft. At an altitude of about eight and a half miles, Unity detached from the mother ship. It fired its engine, reaching more than three times the speed of sound. That’s when the spaceship pierced the edge of space.

Spectators cheered. They jumped into the air and embraced when the rocket plane touched back down on Earth. Mr. Branson pumped his fists as he stepped out of the plane.

Virgin Galactic already has more than 600 reservations from people who want to go to space. Kerianne Flynn has a ticket. “I think there’s going to be nothing like going up there and look back down on the Earth, which is what I think I’m most excited about,” she says.

Can you imagine the view of God’s great creation from space? Deuteronomy 10:14 says, “Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the Earth with all that is in it.”  

Posted: July 13, 2021

How much is a single Super Mario video game worth? If you play games, you probably would say about $40-$60, right? But what if that game was really old—and unopened, in its original packaging? How much would it be worth then? Heritage Auctions in Dallas, Texas, just found out. An unopened copy of Nintendo’s Super Mario 64 sold for $1.56 million. Wow. That’s a whole lot of money for an all-time favorite video game.

Heritage Auctions announced the 25-year-old game’s sale on Sunday, June 11. The final bid broke the auction house’s previous record price for the sale of a single video game. There is no word yet on the name of this latest video game purchaser.

Super Mario 64 was the best-selling game on the Nintendo 64 video gaming system. The auction house says that Super Mario 64 was the first to feature the Mario character in 3-D. In the game, Mario’s mission is to collect power stars while searching Princess Peach’s castle to find and rescue her.

Super Mario 64 isn’t the only pricey video game to sell lately. An unopened copy of Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda sold on Friday, July 9, for $870,000. Valarie McLeckie is Heritage’s video game specialist. She says it was shocking for the auction house to see the Super Mario 64 game sell for more than $1 million just two days after the Zelda game broke its past record. 

Evidently, some video games are worth quite a chunk of change. In April, the auction house sold an unopened copy of Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. That game was originally bought in 1986 and forgotten about in a desk drawer. It sold for $660,000.

Posted: July 12, 2021

One of China’s wandering elephants walked away from his herd. Officials captured him near the city of Yuxi in southwestern China. They sent him back to the nature reserve that he and the rest of the pachyderms escaped from last year.

The elephants attracted nationwide attention after leaving the Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve. They walked more than 300 miles north of the reserve. The herd comprised 16 elephants when it left the reserve. Two walked back home on their own. The rest kept moving through China.

A lone male elephant left the traveling herd more than a month ago. The 10-year-old, 1.8-ton beast started hanging around populated areas. For safety, officials decided to send him back to the reserve.

Authorities tranquilized the elephant with a blow dart. They put him in a cage, loaded him onto a truck, and returned him to the nature reserve. That’s according to the government newspaper China Daily. The Yunnan government says the elephant appeared healthy and had no injuries.

The remaining group of elephants includes six females, three adult males, two juveniles, and three calves. (A baby elephant is called a calf.) All of the elephants look healthy.

People are watching every move the elephants make. More than 200 people with 20 drones and dozens of vehicles are tracking them. Roads have been closed to allow the elephants to pass by. Residents were told to stay indoors if the herd passes through villages. Tons of food have been used to lure the elephants away from populated areas. State TV carries updates several times each day. Thankfully, the enormous animals haven’t injured any people. They have damaged only crops.

The Bible uses the word behemoth to describe a large and powerful beast. Some people think behemoth might have been an elephant. It means a huge or monstrous creature. Job 40:15 says, “Behold, Behemoth, which I made as I made you; he eats grass like an ox.”

Posted: July 9, 2021

Wisconsin proudly calls itself America’s Dairyland. In that state, the dairy cow is the official domestic animal. Milk is the official drink. And cheese is the official dairy product. The state makes more cheese than any other—3.4 billion pounds each year! But believe it or not, there is no official state cheese. On Wednesday, state lawmakers considered a bill that could change that.

The bill makes colby the official cheese. Colby is similar to cheddar. But it is milder, has more texture, and tastes sweeter.

Colby may be as “gouda” choice as any. But it might grate against the preferences of fans of cheddar, Swiss, provolone, and other varieties.

Colby holds a special place in Wisconsin cheese history. In 1885, Joseph Steinwand created the cheese in Colby, Wisconsin. He named it after the township where his father built the county’s first cheese factory.

Colby isn’t the most produced cheese in Wisconsin. Mozzarella is tops. Next come cheddar and other Italian varieties. Still, Wisconsin’s 150 cheese plants produce more than 45 million pounds of colby each year.

The bill has been introduced several times. But critics have shredded it. Some worry that naming just one “big cheese” would hurt the sales of others. Wisconsin doesn’t want to lose its cash cow.

Supporters say choosing colby doesn’t mean it’s the best or most popular. They want to honor its unique state history.

“I am not going to give up,” says bill co-sponsor Senator Kathy Bernier. “Wisconsin does cheese better than anybody else, and colby is the Wisconsin original that helped transform our state into America’s Dairyland.”

The bill will have to pass the state Senate and Assembly. Then Governor Tony Evers must sign it before it becomes law.

If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. — Numbers 14:8

Posted: July 8, 2021

Big Jake’s owner called him a “truly magnificent animal.” And that he was. The horse was HU-MON-GOUS! At six-foot, 10 inches tall at his withers (the top of his shoulders), he weighed 2,500 pounds. Guinness World Records declared him the world’s tallest living horse. Sadly, Big Jake has died. Others at his farm in Wisconsin miss him.

The 20-year-old Belgian horse lived on Smokey Hollow Farm in Poynette, Wisconsin.

The Guinness Book of World Records certified Jake as the world’s tallest living horse in 2010.

An equine is any member of the horse family. God made equines in many different sizes. An average horse stands around five feet tall at the withers. Ponies are shorter than horses. They measure less than 57 inches. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the world’s shortest horse ever was only one foot, five inches tall! Her name was Thumbelina and she lived in St. Louis, Missouri. Imagine Thumbelina standing next to enormous Big Jake!

Belgian horses are some of the biggest and strongest horses in the world. Jerry Gilbert was Big Jake’s owner. He said the Belgian horse was born in Nebraska and weighed 240 pounds at birth. That’s about 100 pounds heavier at birth than a typical Belgian foal!

King Solomon had thousands of horses, according to the Old Testament. 1 Kings 4:26 says, “Solomon also had 40,000 stalls of horses for his chariots, and 12,000 horsemen.” 2 Chronicles 9:28 says, “And horses were imported for Solomon from Egypt and from all lands.” Solomon probably had some tall horses too! 

Mr. Gilbert has a few plans to help everyone remember his “superstar” horse. He will keep Big Jake’s stall empty. He will also insert a brick on the outside of the stall with the horse’s picture and name. As for Big Jake’s horse friends, “the other horses know. I think they have their own grieving time because Jake was the center of attention around here. There is a huge void. It feels like he’s still here, but he’s not,” says Mr. Gilbert. 

Posted: July 7, 2021

Pelicans in Albania (a country in southern Europe) must have enjoyed the peace and quiet. After a season with less human presence in the Diviaka-Karavasta Lagoon, the endangered population of pelicans is growing.

Officials who keep count of the birds say that there were 68 nesting pairs in 2019. This year, there are 85. That’s a huge increase for a huge bird’s family. These pelicans can grow to be up to six feet. They can stretch their wings 11 feet from wingtip to wingtip!

The seaside Diviaka-Karavasta National Park is big. Its 55,000 acres include a long sandy beach and a saltwater lagoon. The lagoon is filled with mudflats and tiny islands. At least 260 bird species live in the park.

Locals call the giant Dalmatian pelicans by a nickname. They’re known there as “curly pelicans.” The only place these pelicans nest in all of Albania is on the park’s Pelican Island. About 100 years ago, there were 250 nesting pelican couples. That number fell as low as 19 pairs in 2003. It’s great news that the pelican family is growing again.

Isaiah 32:18 describes the peace God promises for His people. It says, “My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

“Peace and quiet during the pandemic has helped us a lot in the preservation of Pelican Island,” says Adrian Koci. He is the head of the Regional Agency of Protected Areas. He and his team started caring for the pelicans seven years ago.

As people hear about the beautiful pelicans, many want to see them. In 2019, 550,000 people came to the pelican site. All the commotion was stressful for the shy birds. In 2020, pandemic precautions kept many thousands of people away. It seems that restfulness was good for the big birds.

Posted: July 6, 2021

“It was the thrill of a lifetime—times a million,” says Gwen Goldman. First, she gave fist bumps to the New York Yankees. Then she walked onto the Major League Baseball field and waved to the crowd. She got to be a Yankees’ bat girl at the age of 70. That’s six full decades after the Yankees turned her down.

When she was 10 years old, Ms. Goldman asked to be a bat girl. But she got a letter in the mail saying she was not allowed. Why? Because she was a girl. The letter said, “While we agree with you that girls are certainly as capable as boys, and no doubt you would be an attractive addition on the playing field, I am sure you can understand that in a game dominated by men a young lady such as yourself would feel out of place in a dugout.”

Fast forward 60 years. Wearing a full Yankees uniform, Ms. Goldman threw out a ceremonial first pitch to New York player Tyler Wade. Then she stood beside team manager Aaron Boone for the national anthem. Ms. Goldman posed with the umpires. After the third inning, fans in the stadium watched a video of Ms. Goldman receiving the invitation to be a bat girl for the game. Following the video, she was introduced to the crowd. Ms. Goldman walked up the Yankees dugout steps onto the field. She waved her cap as fans applauded.

Current Yankees general manager Brian Cashman was happy to make Ms. Goldman’s dream come true. “I didn’t hold it against them. I loved the Yankees,” says Ms. Goldman. “I never in my wildest dreams—never thought that 60 years later, Brian Cashman would make this become a reality.”

For He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul He fills with good things. — Psalm 107:9

Posted: July 5, 2021

Happy Independence Day from WORLDkids!

Our staff is enjoying a day off today to remember the freedoms we have in the United States of America. But even more, we’re reflecting on the greatest freedom of all: Freedom from the sin that held us in bondage to our own wills and kept us from deep relationship with our loving, gracious, and merciful God.

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. — Galatians 5:1

Posted: July 2, 2021

Part of a subway line in Mexico City, Mexico, collapsed on May 3, 2021. Tragically, 26 people died. Now Mexico’s richest man has pledged to pay for the rebuilding, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador says.

Carlos Slim owns several companies in Mexico. One of his companies had built most of the section that collapsed. He has promised to pay for the rebuilding out of his own pocket. He says he will have the subway back in service in a year.

Mr. Slim denies there were building problems. But the city hired a firm to study the possible causes of the accident. Part of the subway line was raised above the ground. That part buckled. Two subway cars crashed down.

The report says there was not enough support for the cars. The concrete may have been defective. And the welds that kept steel beams together appear to have been badly done.

If there were defects when the line was built between 2010 and 2012, that would be bad news for Mr. Slim and diplomat Marcelo Ebrard. Mr. Ebrard was mayor of the city at the time.

For almost a decade, there have been reports that the project was rushed. Mr. Ebrard wanted to open the Number 12 subway line before he left the mayor’s office in 2012.

Mr. Slim is an engineer. Any suggestions his firm did shoddy work on the subway would hurt his reputation. As Proverbs 22:1 tells us, “A good name is better than riches.”

People are still studying the accident. No one has been charged with wrongdoing yet.

In His law, God told the Israelites they were to make restitution for their wrongs. (Leviticus 6-17) Restitution means payment or action to make up for harm that has been done. Maybe that is what Mr. Slim is doing.

Jesus paid for our sins. But out of repentance and thankfulness to Him, we can still make restitution to those we have hurt.