Thousands of Students Protest against University fees in Central London

By Rhea Panjwani
On Wednesday 19^th November 2014, thousands of students from over forty towns and cities, organised by the Student Assembly Against Austerity, marched along the streets of central London protesting against student loans and demanding free education. The protestors clashed with the police who attempted to stop them from entering the Parliament square. This student demonstration was the biggest in the last four years. They carried banners and signs which had slogans such as ‘Free Education, Tax the Rich’ and shouted:
“What do we want? Free Education! When do we want it? Now!” and “Shame on You!”

Missiles were thrown at police officers and in some places, protective fencing surrounding the parliament square was pulled down.

It all started with the government’s decision in 2010 to remove the limit on university tuition fees from £3200 per year and raised it to nearly three times the amount at up to £9000. A recent study by the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) has revealed that an average student who leaves university has a huge debt of about £44,000. About 75% of students who have taken student loans will only clear them when they are in their fifties. By that time, most of them will need the money to manage their own families, pay off their mortgage and fund their children’s education.

Towards the end of the day six arrests were made, including two for affray and two for assault.

The first comet landing

By Anya Stacey

On the 12^th of November the first space probe ever landed on a comet, this comet was called Rosetta.

Comets are huge lumps of rock that orbit planets such as earth.  Scientists wanted to explore the comets in more detail than we already have.

This programme has been going on for a very long time and finally a space probe landed. As the space probe landed, the probe projected its landing gears into the nucleus of the comet to keep it attached, however, various reports have said that the probe is already starting to detach.

So, big space programming companies like NASA are getting involved in this operation.

Scientists are excited to find new discoveries such as the elements that the comet contains, and what dangers it could bring to Earth as life goes on.

The space probe will project and take various pictures of the comets surface and maybe even look for bacterial life’s existence, however scientists highly doubt that.

Currently scientists believe that comets are spare or stranded lumps of rock that were left over after the Big Bang was caused, but looking into even more detail can always make new discoveries.

Let’s hope for exciting new discoveries after this overwhelming news!

 

 

More female characters to be in the new Lego film

By Aydah Ashraf

The Lego Movie directors have said they'll put more female characters, like heroine Wild-style, in the sequel. They think it’s not fair just to have men, as women are active and strong as well.

They told the BBC that it's important to inspire young women as well as young men. 

They haven't revealed whether the main character would be female, but they did say they think there's a shortage of female leads in recent years. 

The Lego toy company made headlines in August when it released a set of three female scientist figures - a palaeontologist, an astronomer, and a chemist - but it has also faced criticism for the predominantly pink Lego Friends range, which is aimed at young girls.

The Lego Movie has made more than $468m (£294m) worldwide and will make more in many years to come. 

Are we alone?

By Olivia Haigh

Since the beginning of time, we have been told about extraterrestrial life such as life on Mars, yet still we haven’t had proof, until now. For centuries, we humans have inhabited the Earth and made it the place we call home. Now, evidence of possible life on Mars has created an even bigger debate for scientists. The real question is, are we alone?

There is a possibility that there are microbes living on Mars. “There is also a possibility that life began on Mars,” stated Professor Brian Cox at a recent STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) day in Lincoln.

Wherever there is water, there are microbes, living forms that could possibly evolve, giving us a new form of life. Probes will be sent to Mars on a new mission to look for underground water. “There is a chance that there is water under the surface of Mars and wherever there is water, like on earth, there will most probably be some sort of life forms,” added Professor Cox.

NASA’s Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirits and Opportunity, are exploring Mars. It began in 2003 and they are there in order to look at the surface and geology. Evidence of a thigh bone was found, meaning this could lead to proof that life began on Mars and possible evidence of dinosaurs.

But why aliens? Why not another form of human being? Think about the word alien, the dictionary definition is ‘belonging to a foreign country’. What’s the first thing you think of when you say alien? We all seem to picture a short green blob with one eye, but what could they really look like? What if we are living amongst aliens, but we don’t notice because we all look exactly the same? Turn to the person next to you; do you know for sure that they’re from Earth? Are we really alone?

 

Enid Blyton Set for Cinema!

By Alisha Shaikh

Enid Blyton’s stories have always been some of my favourite books to read, whether it’s one from her boarding school series or her mysteries. No matter how much I tell myself that I’m far too old to still be reading stories intended for much younger children, I just can’t resist picking up a Malory Towers book when I feel like relaxing. Generations of families have been enchanted by her captivating novels and now her stories are going to be spread to a far wider audience than people who enjoying reading.

‘The Magical Faraway Tree’, one of Blyton’s most loved books, is all set to be made into a movie. It will be produced by Neal Street Productions (Sam Mendes’ company) and may even have three parts, like the book - The Magic Faraway Tree, The Folk of the Faraway Tree and Up The Faraway Tree.

Marlene Johnson, head of the Enid Blyton Estate, told the BBC, "Enid Blyton was a passionate advocate of children's storytelling, and The Magic Faraway Tree is a fantastic example of her creative imagination.” Many of Enid Blyton’s series were “fantastic examples of her creative imagination”, including the ever popular: Famous Five, Secret Seven, Five Find-Outers, Malory Towers and St Clare’s, to name just a few.

Enid Blyton is also well-known for assisting in the production of Noddy, the TV show that several young children grew up to. I still own the Noddy annual story book of 2004 and I consider it a pretty good representation of my childhood!

I’m incredibly excited about the movies and, although as of yet the release date hasn’t been specified, I just can’t wait!

Schoolboy inventor is given funding for printer idea

By Aydah Ashraf

13-year old Shubham Banerjee has been promised a few hundred thousand dollars to develop his idea by tech company Intel. A Braille printer will provide blind people with the chance to print out and read pages from the Internet as well as other text documents.

 

It has been difficult to develop electronic Braille printers in the past due to their cost but he thinks he has got it. The teenager originally created a prototype of a Braille printer out of Lego when he was just 12.

He was invited to show this early version of the printer at the White House in Washington DC.

The schoolboy from California has secured funding to bring his idea for a low-cost Braille printer to market. This new printer will mean blind people will not need to order Braille read books. Braille is a system of bumps to read.

Shubham originally came up with the idea for a science fair. He then set up his company Braigo Labs with funding from his parents. He is now working with the tech company on a new version using a budget-priced chip and 3D-printed parts. Let’s wish him full success on this.

Rosetta: The Most Daring Landing Ever Attempted

10 years ago, the Rosetta deep space explorer was sent off to begin its long journey into deep space. This journey was long, and along the voyage to the comet it had to get not one, but three gravity assists from earth and one from mars (Using the gravity of the planets to get to the right direction and increase its speed). After that, the comet went into hibernation for a couple of years, before finally embarking on the comet earlier this year. However, (If everything goes to plan that is) today will prove the be a historic event in the history of astrophysics and space travel, as this is both the first time that an orbital spacecraft has ever orbited a comet, and the first time that a lander has attempted to land on one. This could prove to be a historic day for earth and physics, as if the landing is successful, scientist will be able to know a large amount of information about how comets work, and whether they were the reason as to why our planet has an atmosphere and oceans. In fact, even before they have landed scientists have begun to find new and unexplained things, such as a strange noise coming out of the comet, which they believe to be a stream of charged particles coming out of the comet, however the exact reason is not yet fully known (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2830476/Listen-Rosetta-s-comet-singing-Scientists-baffled-mysterious-sounds-recorded-near-67P-ahead-Philae-landing.html, visit that link to hear the singing comet).

Today will be a day that will truly go down in history, and the knowledge gained from the comet should prove revolutionary. Remember to visit the live stream at: http://new.livestream.com/esa/cometlanding

The landing should happen around 3:30 PM GMT, and we should get the first images at around 5:30, as there is a several hour delay from the spacecraft to earth. Make sure to stay tuned!

Damian Bemben
Columnist

Remember what the Poppy Stands for.

If you follow the YJA blog, you’ll probably know that once every fortnight I do a generally light-hearted blog about current events and what’s happening now, but it wouldn’t feel right to do so on such an important date. Yesterday was the centenary of the First World War and Armistice Day. It was a day to remember the soldiers who have been killed in conflicts since the start of the First World War. But what many people forget is that it was not a day of patriotism. We honour the fallen, we do not honour the war. We remember the futility of war. We remember all who have fallen, not just British but all casualties of the wars, as apart from they’re leaders, not much was different from the soldiers on both sides of the trenches. 

When you remember the fallen, remember this.

The poppy grew on both sides of the fields.

Damian Bemben
Columnist

A Helping flipper from the Robo-Penguin researcher

By Emily Bonner

On 2^nd November, findings from a report on the behaviour of Emperor penguins in the Antarctic were published thanks to the help of a robotic rover dressed as a penguin chick. The researchers, from the French National Centre for Scientific Research, told BBC news they were trying to find "a less invasive and stressful way to collect data on these species", which are known to be extremely timid.

Dr Yvon Le Maho, who led the study, found that when approached by humans, the penguins’ heart rates would increase considerably, so came up with the idea of using a rover to study them in their normal state. Early models looked a little like remote controlled cars and Dr Yvon explained to BBC news that "Emperors huddle together, because they have no [other] territorial defence… So when they see the rover approaching, they get very stressed.”

Five models later, and the researchers had disguised the rover as a fluffy chick. The penguins seemed much more comfortable around it, even huddling with it and trying to communicate with it.

The scientists wanted to avoid the usual approach of tagging flippers, because they felt it was “unethical” and altered the penguins’ health. They worked with nature filmmakers to come up with a new approach of using under-the-skin transponders, which work like microchips. The rover can recognise the transponders within 60cm of a penguin, providing useful data for scientists.

"Scientists do not generally speak about disturbance they cause," Dr Le Maho told BBC News. “But I have always been very concerned with that - it relates to both science and ethics."

Armistice Day

By Adesua Alabi

It’s the time of year when we see politicians, celebrities and royalty on the news are wearing red poppies to commemorate remembrance or Armistice Day. Armistice Day is celebrated in the commonwealth countries on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month and marks the end of the First World War.

This year Armistice Day is on Tuesday 11th November. On this day a two minutes silence takes place to remember and honour over 1 million commonwealth service men and women that have fought and died in the First World War and is an opportunity to remember those who are still fighting in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan, defending our country to the present day. The Royal British Legion has a poppy appeal and all of the donations go towards supporting those who were injured in battle and the general welfare of service men and women, nationally 51 million was spent in 2013 to fund the welfare on those in need.

The poppy is used to commemorate the war as it was the only thing that survived on the battlefields of Flanders and other places where some of the bloodiest battles took place. Many people have written poems about what Armistice days means to them as losses are felt by many across the commonwealth. The poppy symbolises life, colour, and hope and reassures those who are still fighting, making it a fitting symbol for the occasion. Wreaths, broaches of poppies and other memorabilia are worn by those who choose to and reflects personal memories and feelings.

At the Tower of London a total of 888,246 poppies have been installed by families who have lost loved ones in WW1 or in battles while defending their country. Across 4 months people have come to the Tower of London to lay a poppy in memory of someone or as a sign of gratitude and respect, leaving a powerful visual reminder of the First World War Centenary as part of the Every Man Remembered act. It is a time where all people regardless of social status or race come together to honour and reflect on the bravery and sacrifices made by those who died in the centenary for the safety and security of our country.  

For me Armistice Day is a chance to show my respect towards those who fought for the safety of the country that I live and learn in. Although none of my family members, that I am aware of, have died in the First World War I know of others that have lost loved ones and of course it will have a different meaning and significance to each person.

 All in all Armistice Day is a opportunity to reflect on many things like the deaths of loved ones who died in the war but may not have fought on the frontline or the deaths of loved ones in general and provides a time of peace and congeniality.