Kids News - Environment Articles

Just when scientists think they have discovered and recorded every species of insect that crawls the earth they find something new. Earlier this month, Peter Jager, the head of arachnology at Frankfurt's Senckenberg Research Institute reported the discovery of a unique spider that has adapted to its dark environment by simply doing away with of all of its eight eyes!...

If you are in the market for a new two-wheeler, you may want to consider this radical bicycle. The brainchild of Israeli inventor Izhar Gafni, the fully functional vehicle that costs just $10 USD to manufacture is crafted entirely from cardboard. And, incase you are wondering, it is water resistant too!...

Each year in late July or early August, we witness the Perseid Meteor showers, a spectacular 'shooting star display', as the Earth in its orbit around the sun, passes through the dusty remains of the comet Swift-Tuttle. This year, the best time to watch nature's annual firework show will be on late Saturday, August 11th or early Sunday when the skies are darkest....

While destruction of rainforests is causing concern in many parts of the world, nowhere is it worse than in the Amazon. Often referred to as the 'lungs of the planet' the 1.2 billion acre rainforest produces about 20% of the earth's oxygen and is therefore, not just crucial for its own ecosystem, but also, for the survival of all living creatures, including humans! Fortunately, the deforestation there trends are slowly but surely, starting to reverse....

Olympics spoiler alert - Usain Bolt has been outrun! How do we know this before the world's fastest man has even run the finals of his signature 100-meter dash? Because, while Usain hopes to complete the distance in 9.4 seconds, Sarah has already done it in a blistering 5.95 seconds. However, in all fairness to the Jamaican sprinter, she does have a slight advantage, because Sarah is not a two-legged human, but a four-legged cheetah!...

While to most of us ants are just tiny annoying insects that seem to come in droves whenever they sense something sweet, the household pests are quite fascinating - They have a naturally built-in GPS system that allows them to navigate their way, the ability to morph into 'living rafts' to survive floods and now it turns out that with a little help from humans, some of them can even be transformed into colorful gems....

Though 25% of the world's population may not have access to electricity, they all have access to a source of energy that is currently being wasted - Kinetic energy released by their bodies when they exert themselves. Now two Harvard alums have figured out how to capture this energy and convert it into electricity - The only equipment needed? A Soccket soccer ball and the desire to have some fun!...

If you ever happen to visit Central Asia's Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan, you will witness a strange but breathtaking sight - A giant hole in the middle of the desert aglow with a fire that never seems to go out - And the fact is, that it has not gone out for the last forty years at least. However, this phenomenon, which has become a minor tourist destination, is not a natural wonder but the result of an accidental excavation....

No matter how hard conservationists try, there is always some ruthless poacher out there to kill animals regardless of how close they are to becoming extinct. Now, a trio of endangered young mountain gorillas in Rwanda have decided to take it upon themselves to try save their species, by thwarting their attempts....