Seeing is believing – or is it?!

On the new show Brain Games, host Jason Silva and executive producer Jerry Kolber uncover and explain tidbits about the inner-workings of the human brain through interactive games. Brain Games is the only show I know of where the star of the show is the brain of the person watching it! Everything is about you and your brain. It gets you the think about thinking!

Brain Games enables viewers to take a quick glimpse at the amazing human brain and “infects people with wonder,” according to Jason Silva. This show doesn’t just make it enjoyable to learn about complicated topics like how your brain perceives and interprets things having to do with time, it also makes these topics easier to comprehend.  To me, it’s a science show that feels more like something you would want to see with friends rather than something you would watch at school.

On the show, deception specialists Apollo Robbins and Brian Scholl, who is the director of Yale University’s Perception and Cognition Lab, help Jason reveal and delve into the secrets behind the mysteries of not just THE brain, but more specifically YOUR brain. But for all you magicians out there — don’t worry! Brain Games isn’t doing magic tricks at all. It just seems like they are because they are tricking your brain, which is indeed magical!

You might be wondering how I got to learn all about Jerry, Jason, and Brain Games. As it turns out, Jason and Jerry spent the afternoon of April 9 exploring the interactive exhibits in the New York Hall of Science in Queens with me, my editor, and another journalist. Jason and Jerry, while using the exhibits as games or as a visual aid, helped me to see and understand the many loopholes in the human brain’s hardwiring. I even got to interview them and play some of their games. I was always amazed, awed, and sometimes even frustrated at the results of these epic games.

If you are already interested in neuroscience, go check out the Brain Games website. It has some really cool games for you to play and explanations on how they work and what they teach us. Even if you don’t think that you are a “science person,”Brain Games will captivate you. It’s just as entertaining as it is educational!

The first episode of Brain Games airs Monday, April 22, at 9 p.m. on the National Geographic Channel. Tune in to find out if you’re brain is game for Brain Games!

Check out my interview with Jason and Jerry on the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps website!

—Kid Reporter Dani Bergman Chudnow

Photos: (top) Kid Reporter Dani Bergman Chudnow looks giant and Brain Games host Jason Silva looks small in a room set up to create an optical illusion at the New York Hall of Science. (bottom) Dani and Jason at their normal size. (National Geographic Channels/Scott Gries)

Untamed Americas is wild and inspiring

I found many reasons to watch the new National Geographic miniseries Untamed Americas. Since I was asked to cover the premiere of the documentary, National Geographic sent me two DVDs with the 4 episodes that will air on June 10 and 11 on Nat Geo Channels, so I watched the whole show beforehand.

The film features some never-before-seen footage of spectacular wild life along the North and South American continents. The documentary captivates viewers with vivid scenes of life and death.

Some of the highlights: a group of seven grizzly bears feasting on a beached whale, a flock of gloriously pink flamingoes engaged in an elaborate group-mating dance, two puma cubs hunting solo for the first time, and a tiny Ecuadorian bat with a tongue one-and-a-half-time the size of its body pollinating a rare flower.

Miniseries executive producer Karen Bass told me at the premiere that this bat was one of her favorites because “it’s got the water cooler factor: it was only discovered in 2005, and that tongue would be nine feet long if it were on a human!”

The mixture of music, sound effects, and natural animal noises capture and add to the intensity of some of the greatest wildlife spectacles. The effect is powerful, endearing, and emotional.

One example is the scene where male bighorn sheep in the Rockies fight it out for hours to settle on the winner of mating rights. The echoes and reverberations bring out the dramatic 22-mile-per-hour head-on clash, which would kill a human instantly.

Majestic scenes like spinner dolphins leaping in the Fernando de Noronha National Marine Park in Brazil, bright green parakeets flying over volcanoes in Central America, Mobula Rays flapping gracefully off the coast of Baja, Mexico, and jellyfish undulating off the coast of Monterey Bay in California are given an even greater impact with the music.

The show will have you at the edge of your seats cheering for your heroes and booing at the villains. But the rule of the wild is “eat or be eaten,” “kill or get killed.” I completely agreed with the comment Casey Anderson, host of America the Wild on Nat Geo WILD, made after the premiere: “At the beginning you’re rooting for the caribou and by end you’re rooting for the wolf.”

Surprises linger in every episode, like the face-off between a little grasshopper mouse and a giant venomous centipede, more deadly than a scorpion. The winner of this uneven fight will astonish you! Keep watching to find out who will be the snack at the end of a valiant battle between a speedy roadrunner and a rattlesnake whose venom can kill a man.

Check out my story about the premiere of Untamed Americas on the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps website!

—Kid Reporter Hannah Prensky

Photo: At a remote, inhospitable, salt-filled lake in South America, a flock of rare Andean flamingos engage in an elaborate dance. (Courtesy National Geographic Channels)

My visit to Fox 2 News

When I first received the email from my Scholastic editor requesting story ideas or possible journalists to interview for the Kid Reporter Tips from the Pros section, the first person I thought of was Lee Thomas.

I watch Lee on TV almost every morning, and I always noticed that his hands and side of his head were completely white. I did some research about him and found out he suffered from vitiligo. Lee’s story signified that there are barriers in life that attempt to keep you from doing the things you love to do best. For Lee, his passion was journalism.

As the day of my interview with Lee approached, I prepared the questions and supplies that I needed. Despite the treacherous road conditions due to snowfall, we headed out to Detroit for the interview.
When I first arrived, I was welcomed by Lee at the door as he was finishing up a few meetings before the nine o’clock show. He then took me into the Fox 2 studio as directors stood across the studio floor putting the show together.

As Lee took his seat for a quick news brief, I had the opportunity to watch what was going on inside the studio: the meteorologist standing in front of the green screen, the traffic reporter putting last minute touches on traffic briefs, producers collecting the latest news, directors looking through papers, and anchors reading their prompters. This made me wonder how much work goes into putting together a broadcast.

When Lee finished the brief, we went into the conference room where I had the opportunity to interview Lee. I learned that Lee has an optimistic and positive attitude and that he really has a motivated character. 

When I asked Lee about what he can tell people who may have barriers in their life, I thought of a barrier that I had. When I was just seven, I was hit by a car in a hit and run accident while I was riding my bike in my subdivision. With surgeries and physical therapy, I completely recovered from the incident. Despite the barriers that stopped me from the things I liked to do best, I learned to be fortunate for what I have. As Lee Thomas told me, “There is no barrier that you cannot overcome.”

—Kid Reporter Charlie Kadado

Photo: Kid Reporter Charlie Kadado interviews Fox 2 News broadcaster Lee Thomas (Photo courtesy Charlie Kadado) 

What I learned from ESPN's Dick Vitale

It's March, which means March Madness! And March Madness means that Dick Vitale is doing what he does best: announcing college basketball games.
 
It's no surprise that one of college basketball most recognized voice is that of ESPN's Dick Vitale. Vitale is a Hall Of Fame broadcaster and has been announcing college basketball games for ESPN since the 1979-1980 season.

His passion and enthusiasm has made him the most well known college basketball announcer today. With his trademark sayings, such as, "awesome baby" and "diaper dandies," fans everywhere tune in to listen to Vitale's thorough knowledge and spirited style of broadcasting.

When I interviewed him at ESPN The Weekend in Orlando recently, he gave me some helpful tips on what kids should do if they want to become sports broadcasters, too.   His first tip was that you have to overcome the fear of the camera. To do this, ask your mom or dad to practice filming you on camera.

"I treat the camera like I'm talking to my buddies, my friends," Vitale said. "Make believe you're talking to all of your buddies."

He also suggested that kids watch some of their favorite people on television and study them. Take a microphone and practice auditioning by pretending to interview your favorite celebrity.

"Try to study the people they think the world of and take the microphone and shut the sound off. Into a tape recorder, tape themselves doing a game," Vitale said.


Preparation is also very important. There is short-term preparation and long-term preparation. Long-term preparation consists of all the information you gather before an interview. Short-term preparation is the work you do the day of an interview or telecast. Much goes into total preparation of announcing and interviewing. Dick Vitale makes sure to sit with coaches and Sports Information Directors at univeristies to get all of the necessary information.

"You don't go on TV and start talking without having knowledge to be able to give back to the people," Vitale said.

In order to acquire information, make sure to do research by using the Internet and other resources.

"Today there is so much information out there, because of the Internet," said Vitale.

Once you have your information, you have to sort it all out and find what you believe is good for a telecast or an article.

Vitale's talents and influences extend way beyond just game analyst. When he isn't busy telecasting or writing children books, he is very much involved in raising money for charitable events.

"I try to raise a lot of money for charities. My goal this year is to raise one million dollars for pediatric cancer to help kids battle cancer," Vitale said.

For more on Dick Vitale, visit dickvitaleonline.com.

And be sure to watch my interview with Dick Vitale on the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps website!

—Kid Reporter Topanga Sena

Photo: Kid Reporter Topanga Sena with ESPN's Dick Vitale after their interview. (Courtesy Topanga Sena)

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK: Would you ever want to be a sports broadcaster like Dick Vitale? What sport would you like to cover as an announcer or journalist? Let us know in the comments below!

 

Jason Castro's Advice

American Idol star gives helpful tips to Kid Reporter who is a future Idol hopeful.

It was inspiring to meet American Idol star Jason Castro. I love his music. He is an enormously talented artist. I also thought he was thoughtful and kind.

Castro starred in Season Seven of American Idol. (Season Ten is now in full swing.)  He releases his first CD and kicks off his first nationwide tour today!

His tour begins in his hometown of Dallas, Texas, on Saturday. When I interviewed Castro at Scholastic Headquarters in New York City recently, I told him that I am also a singer and want to eventually tryout for American Idol. He kindly gave me some practical advice.

Castro told me I can’t audition for American Idol until I am 16, and between now and then I must practice, practice, practice! The key to his success, he said, was following that same advice.

He also told me I should record and listen to myself singing. Plus he advised me to get used to singing in front of an audience.

Castro did not get formal training when he was my age, but he recommends having a voice teacher. I am fortunate because I have piano, choral, and voice lessons. I also practice almost every day. I have also performed in front of audiences both solo and with my choir.

I guess I’m on the right track to become an American Idol! I just need to increase my practice from “almost every day” to EVERY DAY!

Are you watching American Idol this season? Who do you think is going to be the next American Idol? Or who do you think is the BEST artist this year? (They are not always one and the same.)

Send in your comments below.

Also, check out my video interview with Jason Castro by clicking on play!

—Cecilia Gault

On the Orange Carpet!

Kid Reporter Miranda Rector covers the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards

The Kid's Choice Awards can be described in three ways:  extreme, slime-filled, and orange! Although there's no green slime on the celebrity-filled orange carpet, the anticipation of slime and energy is high! It's also really LOUD!

Getting the chance to join the orange carpet frenzy was exciting beyond belief. I was super pumped and peppy.

A lot of covering a red—or in this case orange—carpet event is shouting things like "FRED! FRED! LUCAS! LUCAS! LUCAS! FRED! TAYLOR! TAYLOR! TAYLOR!" to get the celebrity's attention. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, but you can't be disappointed when they rush on by you. Look for the next one and keep on shouting!

Sometimes, to make life a little easier, the publicists come by first to arrange interviews with you. Mostly, though the celebrities see who you are and come to you on their own. I found out that most of them love Scholastic and the Kid Reporters, so if they saw me standing there in my red shirt, microphone in hand, they stopped to talk. That was really awesome and cool!

The biggest star I met was Selena Gomez, who was attending her first ever Nick Kids' Choice Awards show. She was tremendously nice and seemed to be really happy. Even though Wizards of Waverly Place didn't win Favorite TV Show, Selena Gomez took home her first blimp for Favorite TV Actress. After my interview with her, I can only bet Selena Gomez felt really happy inside.

I also met Jennette McCurdy from iCarly. I am a HUGE fan! She was pumped and totally excited, especially to see Apollo Anton Ohno and Shaun White. She wore a green BCBG dress to "respect the slime," she told me. She was hoping to be green and goopy by the end of the show, but sadly missed out on the ritual sliming. I was kind of glad just because I thought her dress was too cute to be slimed.

McCurdy also told me she was disappointed that Harry Potter was not nominated this year. As a self-described "Potterhead" I totally related to that sentiment. I'm also a fan of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, so I'm still glad that it won Favorite Book.

For years I have been staying up watching the Kids' Choice Awards on TV. I never expected to one day be part of the orange carpet. It was mind-blowing!

Did you watch? What did you think? Did your favorites win? Send in your opinions in the comment box below.

—Miranda Rector

Why I Like Oprah

Kid Reporter celebrates her Women’s History Month hero

Is it possible to have a troubled childhood and overcome it to become one of the most powerful women in the world? Oprah Winfrey did just that. While many people use their past as an excuse for their failure in the present, Oprah Winfrey used her hardships to energize her and motivate her to succeed.

As a Kid Reporter, I have found great inspiration in Ms. Winfrey because she is a successful journalist. That’s why I am celebrating her accomplishments for Women’s’ History Month.

Today, she is considered one of the most famous woman in the world. In the beginning, however, it was not an easy journey.

Life for Ms. Winfrey was difficult when she was young. She spent her first six years with her grandmother on a farm in Kosciusko, Mississippi. She moved to Wisconsin with her mother where she was abused. She ran away from home and at age 13 was sent to a juvenile detention center. With no beds available there, she was sent to Nashville to live with her father. He was very strict, but instilled in her the love of reading and learning.

Ms. Winfrey managed to navigate her way to her goals and began her broadcasting career when she was only 17. She studied speech and communications at Tennessee State University. Before the Oprah Winfrey Show was launched, she was a news anchor and hosted a successful local talk show in Chicago, now her home.

Achieving her goals wasn’t enough for Oprah. She also wanted to help others achieve their own dreams. She decided to inspire other people to do their best in life and always brings experts on her show to help people learn.

Ms. Winfrey has earned numerous awards for her amazing work. Time Magazine named her one of the most influential people of the 20th century. Her Angel Network helps people in need and she opened the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa so that they can have great opportunities as well.

Ms. Winfrey doesn’t just complain about what is wrong—she finds a way to make improvements and inspires others to do the same.

“It doesn’t matter who you are or where you came from,” Ms. Winfrey says. “The ability to triumph begins with you. Always.”

That’s why I am celebrating Oprah Winfrey for Women’s History Month this March. Who do you look to for inspiration? Click on the blue comment below and let us know!

—Mariam El Hasan

PHOTO: Oprah Winfrey (center) celebrates the opening of her Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. (Photo Credit: Jerome Delay/AP Images)

“R” IS FOR ROCCO

Rocco Fiorentino rocks on Sesame Street tomorrow!

Hi everyone! I wanted to give you a heads up about one of my BFF’s, Rocco Fiorentino. I wrote an article about Rocco and his foundation, The Little Rock Foundation, a few months ago right here on the Scholastic Kids Press Corps Web site.

Rocco is blind and has been a very busy advocate for the visually impaired since he was 5 years old. He’s now 13 and he’s a great guy and an amazing musician and singer.

Rocco will be featured on Sesame Street this month helping to educate children and adults about blindness. On the PBS broadcast show he gets to do something he loves; sing!

The national air date for the show is January 21 (tomorrow!), and in Philadelphia it’s January 23.

To find out when you can see Rocco on Sesame Street in your area and to get a “Sneak Peek” of the episode, please check out his web site at www.musicbyrocco.com and click on video-showcase—it’s really, really great!

While you’re there, check out Rocco’s other songs, too.

Thanks for another awesome job helping kids understand each other, Rocco!

—Danielle Azzolina

PHOTO: Rocco and the Sesame Street cast. (Photo by Richard Termine)

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Behind-the-scenes at the season's signature parade.

The sun was just starting to rise when my dad and I hopped out of our taxi on Fifth Avenue and 34th Street on Thanksgiving Day. We went from dark to day when we walked onto the NBC broadcast set where Meredith Vieira and Matt Lauer were getting ready to announce the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade.

I was the only reporter who got to interview the Today Show hosts right before the parade! I felt so excited. I still can’t believe that I met them. They were so nice and easy to talk with. Check out the video above!

The scene on 34th Street was really hectic, with police cars trolling up and down the street, stagehands running around with last minute fixes, and rehearsals under way before the sun even came up. I walked in front of the cast from the Broadway revival of Hair! as they prepared for their performance.

After dozens of floats and giant helium balloons, the parade came to an end with the final float—the sleigh carrying Santa Claus. It was a picture-perfect winter wonderland moment with white confetti flying everywhere. I felt like all of the brightly colored paper landed in my hair. By the time we left, there must have been five different colors and shapes of confetti littering the ground.

The Santa Claus float stayed in front of the grandstand as people began to leave, so we followed them onto the street. It was almost like we were walking in the parade! People were still in the stands, throwing confetti and screaming with excitement.

After getting up at 5 a.m., interviewing stars like Matt and Meredith, and covering the two-hour-long parade, I was exhausted. But there was still a story to write, as well as this blog! Hope you enjoy them both.

—Alexis Wiseman

Big Bird’s Wrangler

What it takes to keep an 8-foot, 2-inch bird fluffed.

One of the many interesting jobs on the set of Sesame Street is that of the Muppet Wrangler—the person in charge of making sure the puppets are all well cared for. I visited the Sesame Street set recently and talked to wrangler Michelle Hickey. She told me about the attention to detail that goes into taking care of the biggest Muppet of all—Big Bird!

“There are over 6,000 feathers on Big Bird,” she said. “They’re hand-glued, and they are backed with a ribbon that is hand-stiched on.”

The 8-foot, 2-inch bird is made with thousands of turkey feathers that are dyed by a special company. The feathers are then rated from letters A to D.

“Only feathers rated A and B are put on the muppet, but sometimes C are used toward the bottom,” Hickey said.

The feathers are replaced every two weeks, or—if there’s a special event—immediately after Big Bird comes home. It’s a difficult job, but Hickey loves it.

“It’s fun, it really is,” she said. “I like to think of Big Bird as my project. And it’s always fun to be on the set. It’s kind of a dream job.”

—Aaron Broder

PHOTO: Muppet wrangler Michelle Hickey on the set of Sesame Street with her favorite project—Big Bird! (Photo Courtesy Aaron Broder)