On this week’s news update…

Oil Spill

An oil spill in California…

Robot Snake

Scientists test a robot snake…

Twin Pandas

And twin pandas are born!

First up…

Oil Spill

The coast of southern California is well known for its sun, sea and surf. But last week, a broken underwater pipeline caused 126,000 gallons of oil to spill into the ocean. The oil slick has washed up on beaches and marshland along the coastline, harming fish and birds, and forcing beaches to close.

booms

Inflatable barriers known as booms have been placed in the sea, to trap the oil and stop it spreading along the coastline. And clean-up teams have been sent to beaches to start clearing the oil and help limit damage to wildlife.

Oil plays a major role in fuel production and plastic manufacturing, so we’re likely to continue using it for years to come. It’s therefore important that we limit the chances of future oil spills.

By improving safety checks on rigs and pipelines, we can reduce the risks of oil spilling into the sea. And if we ensure that clean-up teams can respond quickly to any accidents that do occur, we can limit the damage to local ecosystems.

Up next…

Robot Snake

Humans rely on our nervous system to move, think and feel.

nervous system

Our brain sends signals to the rest of our body through our spine to control how we move. And as we touch things, signals are sent to our brain that indicate what our body is feeling or sensing. If someone's spine becomes damaged, they can sometimes lose full control of their body.

Recently scientists have developed a device that might help us better model how nervous systems work: a robot snake!

Controlled by an electronic brain, the robot snake swims through the water by moving its body from side to side. However, when the scientists stopped the robot's artificial nervous system from sending signals to the rest of its body, the snake continued to swim!

The snake's ability to keep moving, shows that nervous systems can sometimes function even when some parts are disabled. Learning from experiments such as this, scientists could one day develop new medical treatments for people whose nervous systems have become damaged.

And finally…

Twin Pandas

It's Animal Watch!

Giant pandas live high in the mountains of southwest China. These calm-natured bears spend most of their time munching bamboo and dozing. However, panda numbers are very low, with only around two thousand now living in the wild.

One reason there are so few pandas is because they find it difficult to find a mate, so not many panda cubs end up being born.

However, a zoo in France has recently witnessed the birth of two twin cubs: Cotton Flower and Little Snow!

Born during the summer, the two cubs have been carefully monitored by zookeepers for several months. Putting on weight, and growing distinctive black and white fur, the baby pandas have been getting to know their mother. And now, the twins have opened their eyes for the first time!

The two healthy youngsters are still too small to spend time in an outside enclosure. But zookeepers hope the twins will soon be out and about for the public to meet!

That's all for this week, we'll see you next time!