BTN: Episode 17 Transcript 19/6/18
Hey, Amelia here. Welcome to BTN. Coming up today.
• We meet two best friends on a mission to help refugees
• Learn more about a famous Egyptian royal.
• And take a tour through the history of cars.
Singapore Nuclear Summit
Reporter: Amelia Moseley
INTRO: All that soon. But first to what some are hoping will be a new friendship between two countries that haven't always got along. We're talking about North Korea and the United States. You might've heard that the US President and the North Korean leader met last week. They signed a pretty important document that involved some pretty big
promises. Take a look.
As the President of the United States, you shake hands with lots of people. Often important people. Sometimes even a couple of people at once. Tricky.
Anyway, it was this handshake that shook everyone up last week. When US President Donald Trump caught up with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, it was more than just two leaders meeting. It was, in fact, the first time any sitting US president has ever met a North Korean leader, and the meeting was an even bigger deal because these two former
enemies made a deal.
You see that document they're signing? It has a lot to do with these. For the past couple of decades, North Korea's been working on building and even testing nuclear weapons.
That's kinda scary and a big no-no when it comes to international law.
You see, after the Second World War, when the first ever atomic bomb was detonated, many countries started developing their own nuclear weapons. The idea was that to stay safe, they had to be as well armed as everyone else. But the trouble with that plan was pretty obvious. If anyone actually used their nuclear weapons and, say, a world war broke out it could end up being a threat to all of human-kind.
That's why in 1968, many countries signed an agreement to stop making, buying or using nuclear weapons. Eventually nearly every country in the world signed, including North Korea. But in the early 2000s, it became the only country to back out and since then it's made it clear it's not exactly against nuclear weapons.
Of course, North Korea isn't the only country that has them. At least eight others do too especially Russia and the US, which have thousands of nuclear weapons. But no other country has been publicly making, testing or threatening to use them.
Now that could be set to change. Recently, North Korea's been showing it wants a more peaceful relationship with its neighbours and other countries, including the US. And that leads us here, to this meeting and that document.
It's not very long, but it basically says North Korea's going to work towards total de-
nuclearisation - a big word for getting rid of nuclear weapons - and that the US and North Korea will work towards peace and friendship. While that sounds great, not everyone's convinced. North Korea's made this kind of deal with the US before.
FORMER US PRESIDENT, BILL CLINTON: I am pleased that the United States and North Korea yesterday reached agreement.
And it didn't really work out. Some also say Mr Trump was sending the wrong message by meeting with Kim Jong-un and paying him respect. The North Korean leader's been
accused of some pretty terrible things and his government denies its citizens a lot of basic rights. But others, including both leaders, say it's a step in the right direction.
US PRESIDENT, DONALD TRUMP: Anyone can make war, but only the most courageous can make peace.
So, while it's see-ya-later for now. The world will be watching these two leaders to see where their new relationship takes them.
This Week in News
The ACT Government's launched a new campaign called Straws Suck to encourage businesses to ditch plastic straws.
It says straws can take up to 200 years to break down and end up polluting waterways.
So literally your children’s children's children will outlive the straw you are using today.
Muslims around the world have celebrated Eid Al Fitr. It marks the end of Ramadan, which is Islam's holiest month when a lot of people fast during the day.
KID: I'm celebrating Eid and we'll be going over to our aunty and uncles.
KID: I think it's special to me because we can kind of celebrate.
Gamers have been raving about this year’s E3. The Electronic Entertainment Expo or E3 for short is an annual conference in LA where some of the biggest players in the video game industry announce all their new titles and tech. This time around Nintendo announced they’ll be bringing Fortnite to the Switch. While Sony showed off a new Spiderman game for the PS4.
Raising Funds for Refugees
Rookie Reporters: Soufia and Arielle
INTRO: Next week is Refugee Week, which is when Aussies are encouraged to think about the millions of people around the world who've had to leave their homes because of violence or war. You're about to meet someone who knows what that's like. 11-year-old Soufia is from Syria but she now lives with her family in Sydney. This Refugee Week Soufia and her best friend Arielle will be taking part in something called a Ration Challenge. Let's find out more about it.
SOUFIA: Hi, I'm Soufia and I'm 11 years old.
ARIELLE: I'm Arielle and I'm 10 years old.
SOUFIA: We met at school. I had no friends because I was new, and Arielle just wanted to play with me and that's how we became friends.
ARIELLE: I met Soufia from our teacher Mrs Laxon and she wanted me to take care of Soufia because she didn't know much English then. I helped Soufia and we became friends. I think it's special to have a friend from another country that we can learn about what's over there.
SOUFIA: I came from Syria and this little town it was beautiful. Most of my family were living there, it used to snow and you had very weird weather. My family left Syria because my parents just wanted to keep us safe in case anything wrong happened. There were little towns being attacked and there was war going on. Thankfully the town we lived in was safe.
ARIELLE: I know there's a lot of war and people getting hurt and sick and a lot of people are in need, and just need a place to live and a home.
SOUFIA: Well for kids to live there that wouldn't be a very nice place. They'd feel really terrified, lots of war going on some people are like homeless right now.
ARIELLE: It’s really sad that people are treating them that way, and I don't understand why people would do it.
SOUFIA: We decided to do the Ration Challenge because we want to help people in refugee camps. It should be fair that they get food and have a good education. The Ration Challenge is when you have to eat food that refugees get to eat at refugee camps. But they're very dry food and you have to eat them for a limited time. We did it for two days.
ARIELLE: Rice and lentil soup. Chick peas and sardines.
SOUFIA: They weren't very nice and not normal food that you eat every day. We tried our best even though they weren't very nice.
ARIELLE: We love doing things together and it’s really fun to do it together cos she’s from Syria and she knew a bit about it. I think people should definitely take the challenge and it's a great way to raise money and help other people who are in need.
SOUFIA: We raised $900. It feels really good and we tried our best to do it. I think that other kids should do it because you're helping someone in need.
Great stuff girls.
Tutankhamun’s Exhibition
Reporter: Matt Holbrook
INTRO: Now to something very old, very valuable and very exciting that's about to come to Sydney. It's an exhibition of treasures from the tomb of Tutankhamun. He was an Egyptian pharaoh that lived more than 3000 years ago, and you might have heard of him. If not.
you're about to find out a whole lot more.
If you've ever wanted to go down as one of history's most famous faces, it would probably help if your face was literally made of gold. And you were already kind of a big deal, say, an Egyptian pharaoh. This is King Tutankhamun, and for nearly a century, people the world over have been a little bit obsessed with him.
King Tut, lived three thousand years ago during a time period we call the New Kingdom of Egypt. Even though it's obviously kinda old now. He took the throne at nine or ten, and lived just a few short years, dying at 19.
Archaeologists aren't exactly sure what he died of, but he probably had malaria and disabilities. Anyway, like Egyptian pharaohs of the time, he was mummified, most of his organs were removed, put in jars to bury with him, and his body was wrapped and preserved in oils and minerals. And all that was stuffed in a secret tomb.
Apart from being a king, King Tut didn't do anything particularly exciting during his life.
That we know of, anyway. But the discovery of his tomb, thousands of years later, made him a superstar. See, in 1922, after years digging in the Valley of the Kings, an area many pharaohs and other important people had been buried, an archaeologist named Howard Carter discovered a set of steps.
HOWARD CARTER DIARY: I was struck dumb with amazement, and when Lord Carnarvon, unable to stand the suspense any longer, inquired anxiously, "Can you see anything?" it was all I could do to get out the words, "Yes, wonderful things".
Tombs like this weren't just filled with mummies and gross body parts in jars, they
contained very valuable objects. The Egyptians believed they could take their riches with them after they died. But those riches made tombs a target for thieves. Despite that, robbers left a lot of King Tut's treasure behind. And people everywhere were blown away with what the tomb contained.
HV MORTON, DAILY EXPRESS: Within the chamber stood an immense sarcophagus of glittering gold, which is almost certain to contain the mummy of the king. Wonderful paintings, including that of a giant cat, covered the walls. A second chamber was crowded with priceless treasures.
There was some speculation his tomb was cursed. It started after a few visitors to the tomb died just months after entering it. Of course, they died from completely explainable
causes, and scientists agree that it's all basically nonsense. But it gave these news reporters something to joke about.
In 2018, Tutankhamun lives on. Well, not really. But Australians will get a rare chance to see some of his treasures. Sydney is set to become one of just 10 cities to host the
biggest Tutankhamun exhibition ever to leave Egypt. Unfortunately, it's not until 2021. The good news is, King Tut's not going anywhere. He's dead.
Ask a Reporter
Do you have a question about Tutankhamun? Ask me live on Friday during Ask a Reporter. Just head to our website for the details.
Did you know?
Did you know that ancient Egyptians removed brains from bodies before they were mummified?
They actually didn't think brains were very important so when a leader died they scooped out his or her brains through the nose then stuffed the skull with rags. Gross.
Frog Sniffer Dogs
Reporter: Charlotte Batty
INTRO: Sorry, I had to share that with you. Now while we're on the subject of noses, let's find out about some very clever dogs whose sensitive sense of smell is helping to save one of Australia's most endangered species. Check it out.
If you've ever tried to find a frog you'll know they can be elusive little amphibians.
CHARLOTTE: Here froggie froggie froggie.
You can hear them sometimes.
CHARLOTTE: What was that?
But they're kind of hard to see.
CHARLOTTE: Is that one? Nooo.
But what if you could sniff them out? Ok, so maybe my nose isn't quite cut out for this sort of work. But for Rubble and Uda are frog sniffing superstars. These two pooches have some of the best noses in the country.
They started their career as search and rescue dogs helping to track down lost humans then conservationists realised that their sensitive sense of smell could be used to find animals too.
They've been sent after the scent of bats and koala and quoll scats and now they've been given their toughest assignment yet, sniffing out the mysterious and critically endangered Baw Baw frog.
This small brown frog lives only on the Mount Baw Baw Plateau in eastern Victoria and it's thought there are less than 1200 of them left in the wild. Experts reckon the species has been hit hard by an infectious disease called Chytrid Fungus, something that's affected a lot of Aussie frogs. That's really worrying because frogs are an important part of our ecosystem. They eat a lot of insects like worms and mosquitos, yuk, and when they're tadpoles they actually clean our waterways by feeding on algae.
So, it's pretty important that these little guys stick around. That's why Zoos Victoria has started a breeding program to save the Baw Baw frog. But before they can make babies they need to find some more adults.
DEON GILBERT, ZOOS VICTORIA AMPHIBIAN SPECIALIST: This species is incredibly difficult to detect in the wild. They live predominantly underground the males only call for about five or six weeks of the year, so that restricts our opportunities to actually locate the species.
So that's where these clever border collies come in.
CHRIS HARTNETT, RESEARCH ASSISTANT: The accuracy of a dog's nose is really unsurpassed, so they basically have a sense of smell or can have a sense of smell that's about 10,000 times stronger than humans, so we really want to utilise that talent.
As part of their training they have to learn to pick the smell of a Baw Baw from this scent board and when they get a whiff of one in the wild they drop to ground to let their trainers know they've found a frog.
DEON GILBERT, ZOOS VICTORIA AMPHIBIAN SPECIALIST: The dogs are able to locate the exact site the frogs were calling from much, much quicker than we could do from just using ears.
Researchers say these frog dogs have helped them more than they could've imagined and are even considering using detection dogs for other threatened species, so these sensitive noses can help to protect many more native critters in the future. And in the meantime, these guys deserve a well-earned rest. Hmmm I wonder if he's dreaming about frogs?
Quiz
Which group of animals do frogs belong to?
Reptiles Mammals or Amphibians?
The word amphibian means two-lives. Amphibians spend their lives in the water and on land.
Sport
The World Cup has kicked off in Russia with some exciting opening matches. The
Socceroos put in a brave performance against France but an unlucky deflection from Aziz Bayitch in the 80th minute gave Les Bleus the win. That's French for the blues by the way.
Meanwhile football fans in Mexico managed to cause a mini earthquake with their
celebrations after the team defeated Germany one-nil. It shocked a lot of people because Germany hasn't lost its opening World Cup game since 1982.
There were some pretty big celebrations in Uruguay. These guys got time off class to watch the national team take on Egypt and a last-minute header sent fans wild. It's the first time Uruguay's won an opening game for 48 years.
To the tennis now and Aussie Ashleigh Barty has won the Nottingham open title over the weekend. She beat British number 1 Johanna Konta taking her world ranking to 16.
Meanwhile, Scottish cyclist Mark Beaumont has broken a pretty retro record on a very retro bike.
Beaumont rode his penny farthing a whopping 35.28 kilometres in an hour breaking a 127- year old British record but sadly he missed out on the world record by only 265 metres.
BTN Investigates – When was the first car made?
Reporter: Charlotte Batty
INTRO: Hi BTN. My name's Abeng and I would like to know: When was the first car made?
CHARLOTTE BATTY, REPORTER: Jack. Jack. I mean Doc. I have a big question I need answered.
DOC: Well, what is it then?
CHARLOTTE: I need to find out when the first car was made.
DOC: The first car. Great Scott. We're going to have to go a long, long way back for that one. Get in the DeLorean.
CHARLOTTE: Err that's a Holden.
DOC: Whatever.
CHARLOTTE: Wait a minute, this doesn't look like the 1800s. This is the National Motor Museum? Hey, come back where are you going? Jack. Oh well, I guess I'll give this a try then.
MATTHEW LOMBARD, NATIONAL MOTOR MUSEUM, CURATOR: Hi Charlotte, I'm Matthew.
CHARLOTTE: Hi Matthew. I was just trying to go back in time to find the first car.
MATTHEW LOMBARD, NATIONAL MOTOR MUSEUM, CURATOR: I'm not sure that we can go back in time, but I might have the next best thing. Do you want to come and have a look?
CHARLOTTE: So, Matthew, what have we got here?
MATTHEW LOMBARD, NATIONAL MOTOR MUSEUM, CURATOR: So here we have a thing called the Shearer steam vehicle. It uses high-pressure steam which is hot water to power the engine and it runs on pressurised steam.
The very first steam powered car was invented back in 1769 by a Frenchman named Nicholas-Joseph Cugnot. At the time most people got around by horse and that didn't change for a while because the early steam cars were really slow and expensive to maintain. It wasn't until 1885 that a German man named Karl Benz came up with the world's first petrol powered car, although some of the earliest cars were actually electric.
MATTHEW LOMBARD, NATIONAL MOTOR MUSEUM, CURATOR: In the early 1900s there were steam powered vehicles, there were electric powered vehicles and gasoline powered vehicles. At the time nobody knew quite what was going to be the future fuel, so everyone was trying different ideas. Obviously, gasoline won out in the end.
By now, people were starting to see the benefits of these horseless carriages although they were reserved for the very rich and it wasn't until the famous Ford Model T came out in 1908 that cars really became popular.
MATTHEW LOMBARD, NATIONAL MOTOR MUSEUM, CURATOR: Ok Charlotte this is it.
This is a Ford Model T. This is a 1922 example. As you see it's got all the essential features of what we consider a modern car. It's got the radiator at the front, the engine behind it, enough passenger compartments for five adults and four wheels.
What made this car so significant was the way it was put together. The founder of the Ford company Henry Ford created the world's first moving assembly line for cars where lots of them could be put together quickly. That made the cars cheaper so more and more people could buy them. Over time, lots of other manufacturers started to mass produce cars. We got big cars, little cars and whatever this is and of course these days it's kinda hard to imagine life without a car.
CHARLOTTE: Which reminds me, how am I going to get home now? Ugh better start walking.
Closer
Don't worry, she did get back eventually. Well that's it for this week but hey, it’ll be next week before you know it and we'll be back with more BTN.
In the meantime, don't hesitate to jump on our website and check out more stories and activities. Catch you later.
