Hi there, it's time for another episode of News Bites…

I'm Nancy Sun.

And I'm Hope Ngo.

In today's stories…

Twists and turns at the airport, and seeing sea stars in a new way.

And in today's Tasty Tidbit…!

You know how big and scary tsunamis can be, but what about a "megatsunami"? Stay tuned to hear more!

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桃園機場飛機盃魔術方塊大賽

Taoyuan Airport Hosts Rubiks' Cube Competition

How fast can you twist and turn?

The Taoyuan Airport Cube Day 2023 was held last week.

The event challenged people to solve Rubiks' Cubes as fast as they could.

The Rubiks' Cube is a 3D puzzle.

It was invented in 1974.

The cubes are made up of many smaller cubes with different color on each side.

You have to twist and turn the cube, to try to get each side all the same color.

The competition at the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport was a whirlwind of speed, skill, and strategy.

The two-day event brought some of the world's best Rubik's Cube solvers from around the world.

There were competitors from Taiwan, of course.

There were also competitors from the US, Japan, and Singapore.

All in all, there were 150 strong competitors.

They had to battle it out in different types of Rubik's Cube competitions.

There's the 2x2, 3x3, 4x4, 5x5, pyramid, and skewb.

And in the end, Taiwan athletes swept the championships!

最後，全部賽程都由台灣選手奪冠。

There was also a special demonstration at the competition.

A Rubiks' Cube expert Li Hua-ting (李華庭) solved a cube in a special way.

She used her feet!

In fact, Hua-ting holds the record in Taiwan for solving a 3x3 Rubiks' Cube with her feet.

She also shared some tips and techniques.

She says finding the right chair height can make a big difference.

台灣3階腳解紀錄保持人李華庭說，要用腳解魔術方塊，最重要的是椅子的高度，只要高度適中就能快速解開。

The Taoyuan Airport Cube Day 2023 showed the mind-bending talents of people from around the world.

And it shows how this amazing toy is still a lot of fun!

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新研究發現海星整個都是「頭」!

Starfish Bodies Aren't Bodies At All

Picture an animal in your mind.

Can you find its head?

Most of the time, it's easy to figure out where an animal's head is.

But that wasn't always the case…for starfish!

For a long time, scientists thought that starfish had five arms.

And these animals had a layer of something like feet, that helped them move around on the seafloor.

And many scientists wondered if sea stars had heads at all.

長期以來，科學家認為，海星可能完全沒有頭部。

But now, new research may have a surprising answer.

A new study finds that most of the sea star's body IS its head.

不過最新的研究發現海星的整個身體其實都是頭！

To figure this out, scientists used new technology that helped them look closely at genes.

This technology helped them see genes that control the growing of different body parts, like a head, or a tail.

Then they looked at the genes on sea stars.

And they saw that genes for growing a head are all over the sea star.

But there were almost no genes for growing a body or a tail.

One scientist has an interesting way to describe (形容) starfish.

He says the starfish is basically "just a head", crawling around on the seafloor!

科學家說其實海星經過演化後，就像是一顆頭，在海床上爬行。

This scientist has been studying (研究) sea stars for 10 years.

But he says there is still a lot more to learn about these amazing animals.

Some scientists think understanding more about sea stars could give us clues on how different animals stay healthy.

This could help us solve medical or environmental problems.

And some think that learning about sea stars could even help us figure out how life on Earth started.

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So, in today's News Bites…

The Taoyuan Airport Cube Day 2023 was held last week.

The event challenged people to solve Rubiks' Cubes as fast as they could.

The two-day event brought some of the best Rubik's Cube solvers from around the world.

And in the end, Taiwan athletes swept the championships!

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And,

A new study finds that most of the sea star's body is its head.

To figure this out, scientists used new technology that helped them look closely at genes.

One scientist says the starfish is basically "just a head", crawling around on the seafloor!

Some scientists think understanding more about sea stars could help us solve medical or environmental problems.

And some think that learning about sea stars could even help us figure out how life on Earth started.

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趣味小點

Tasty Tidbit

Did you know that the world's largest ocean wave ever recorded was 524 meters tall? That's taller than Taipei 101! It was recorded in Lituya Bay, Alaska in 1958. There was a big underwater earthquake, and the wave became so big, it's called a "megatsunami". Two people on a boat, including a seven-year-old boy were caught by the wave and lifted high up into the air, but they survived!

If you have a fun fact, a joke, or interesting news you'd like to share with us, record your message and send us your Tasty Tidbit to [email protected], and you might hear it at the end of an episode!

Tune in again next time for an all new episode of News Bites!