Kid News This Week: India’s mega “Maha” Kumbh Mela (festival), polar bears’ ice-free super power, Valentine’s Day Venus, Czech money-saving rodents
We have another packed episode for all you, newsies! Half a billion people attend the biggest peaceful gathering in the world – right here in India. Yes, we’re talking about the mega – or should I say, “Maha,” Khumb Mela. We’ll give you the low-down AND have a special report from a kid correspondent who was there. Ever wondered how polar bears can go in and out of ice-cold water without their fur freezing? Well, some Norwegian scientists did and they found the answer. Heard about Valentine’s Venus – yep, it’s a thing and it’s still happening. We’ll tell you all in our space news. `And some heroic rodents who were beavering away in the Czech Republic save a town a million dollars – but you gotta listen till the end to find out how!
Episode 192
LEELA: This week… India’s mega Kumbh Mela, polar bears’ ice-free superpower, Valentine’s Day Venus and the money-saving rodents.
OPENING STING – LEELA: “Hey, hey, hey. Listen up. New, new, newsy – Newsy Pooloozi!”
THEME MUSIC
LEELA: Hello and welcome to Newsy Pooloozi – the news pool for curious kids and adults!
LEELA: I’m your host Leela Sivasankar Prickitt and, as ever, I’m joined by the big story explainer and sound effects finder – otherwise known as my… mama!
MAMA: Hello, hello. You can also call me Lyndee Prickitt.
LEELA: We have another packed episode for all you, newsies!
Half a billion people attend the biggest peaceful gathering in the world – right here in India. Yes, we’re talking about the mega – or should I say, “Maha,” Kumbh Mela. We’ll give you the low-down AND have a special report from a kid correspondent who was there.
Ever wondered how polar bears can go in and out of ice-cold water without their fur freezing? Well, some Norwegian scientists did, and they found the answer.
Heard about Valentine’s Venus – yep, it’s a thing and it’s still happening. We’ll tell you all in our space news.
And some heroic rodents who were beavering away in the Czech Republic save a town a million dollars – but you gotta listen till the end to find out how!
LEELA: OK then, let’s dive on in. First up, it’s the…
BIG NEWS STORY STING – VARIOUS VOICES: “The Big news story of the week!”
MAMA: Today’s Big News Story is just that, big!
LEELA: And by that you mean…?
MAMA: I’m talking about the Maha Kumbh Mela taking place right now here in India!
LEELA: Oh yes! The massive festival – or “mela” – that takes place every four or six years, although the mega one is every 12 years, right?
MAMA: Right. But “mega” doesn´t even seem to do it justice. First of all, it’s one of the most important spiritual festivals for Hindus during which participants bathe or “take a dip” in a sacred river. Second of all, it’s around six weeks long. And thirdly, over the course of those weeks, millions upon millions of people attend it.
LEELA: And when you say millions, you mean…?
MAMA: Well, imagine if every person in the United States of America –
LEELA: That would be 335 million people.
MAMA: Thank you. What if they all showed up at the festival?
LEELA: OK, that’s big.
MAMA: And – guess what – that’s not even close!
LEELA: Huh??
MAMA: This year’s festival has attracted… drum roll please…
SFX OF DRUMROLL
MAMA: Already nearly 500 million people! And there’s still another week to go.
LEELA: Wowowowow. So crazy. No wonder it’s called the world’s largest peaceful gathering of people. But to be clear – all 500 million people aren’t there at the same time.
MAMA: Right. So, this year’s festival started on January 13th and lasts 45 days until February 26th in north India in a place called Prayagraj, which is just one of four cities where the mela can take place. Prayagraj is so special because it’s where the Ganges and Yamuna rivers converge.
LEELA: Which means, come together.
MAMA: Exactly.
LEELA: So, people take a dip in the river why exactly?
MAMA: Well, for this I think we need to head to Amaya Booker Soni, who’s actually been there, done that and hey, let’s find out if she’s got a t-shirt… I mean, it’s a spiritual thing, so probably not… Then again, melas which is another word for festival are often places in India where lots of arts, crafts food and souvenirs are also on sale.
LEELA: That’s true. India is one big craft-fair-party, ha ha! OK, then. Well, Amaya – tell us more about this amazing festival you’ve been lucky enough to attend!
AMAYA: Thanks, you guys!
So, yes, the name Maha Kumbh Mela actually means, “great festival of the sacred pitcher.”
As in a pitcher of water.
But this pitcher, according to Hindu tradition, contains the elixir of immortality.
That’s a mouthful, right?
Well, basically an elixir is like a godly or magic potion.
So, an “elixir of immortality” means a liquid that makes you live forever.
According to legend, during a battle between the gods and demons, four drops of the “elixir of immortality” spilled out of a pitcher.
Where?
You guessed it – the into the rivers of the four cities where the mela takes place.
Prayagraj, Haridwar in the north, Ujjain in the middle of the country, and Nashik near the western coast.
Taking a dip in any of these rivers brings about… spiritual renewal, of course!
As in, all the bad things that you´ve done in your life are… forgiven.
And this year it’s the “Maha” Kumbh Mela… meaning great or huge, which only happens every 144 years – when there’s a rare alignment of the sun, the moon and Jupiter.
I gotta say – I felt pretty lucky being able to attend this once-in-a-lifetime event!
LEELA: Wowzers! Yeah, I can totally imagine, Amaya. But, well, that’s a lot of people to deal with, no? What was it like being there?
AMAYA: It was very breathtaking to see so many crowds just going to one place. I felt a bit squish at some times, but also, I felt really happy seeing that India had such a rich culture.
LEELA: Was it ever scary being around so many crowds?
MAMA: Yeah, I mean, while it’s been remarkably safe and peaceful there was a sad stampede a few weeks ago, right? Where 30 people were killed… Were you you ever scared?
AMAYA: So, it did make me scared seeing that we were right there
and a stampede happened.
But also, I was really sad that people lost their lives
and people's families lost.
And what I was thinking is that there were a lot of stories being told,
so, lots of rumors.
So, we're not really sure what right happened.
But when I heard that, I got a bit scared.
But then I realized that it didn't happen on the side that we were.
It happened on the other side where the main sanan are.
A sanan is when you go into the rivers,
into the Sangam and you take a dip.
And what was really special about Monia and Amavasya was that
the sadhus couldn't take their sanan,
but I was able to take the snot.
I thought that was really special.
And this was the main Sanan.
This was a very important one.
So, that's what I thought was really special.
LEELA: And ummm, well, a lot of those people taking a dip in the river are, ummm, well, in their birthday suits, as in buck-naked, right? Was that ummm, awkward at all? And, by the way, are there many children who go to this?
AMAYA: So, not a lot of children were there.
And I don't think they were feeling awkward.
Because I think they were doing what was in that tradition.
And it was really proud to see that people doing Bucknake it stuff.
Like still doing it, like even though we're in the 21st century.What I really thought was actually really nice to see that people are still
doing the culture from 5,000 years ago.
LEELA: What was your favorite moment?
AMAYA: Taking a sanan, walking in the crowds, and taking a snot was my best one, but also on the boat.
LEELA: And just one more thing… So many people… well, that’s a looooooot of porta potties, right?!
MAMA: Ha! 150,000 porta potties, to be exact. Not to mention 160,000 tents, 99 parking lots, 15,000 sanitation workers and 25,000 garbage bins. And I’m sure even those weren’t enough. It’s taken a lot of planning, that’s for sure!
LEELA: Totally! Amaya – please tell me you didn’t have to wait for hours just to use the toilet!
AMAYA: So, people have to wait.
And also with food, they have to wait.
So, there are few toilets in each area.
So, like maybe like 20, 20, 40.
So, people have to wait.
But I thank God did not have to wait.
Because I used the toilet in the morning
so that I didn't have to be in the situation waiting for hours just to go for one toilet.
LEELA: Well… wow! I’m in awe of you going to this thing. Of all the people going! Thanks SO much for sharing your experience with us!
MAMA: Yeah, super insightful stuff – thanks a lot!!
[SOURCE: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqx932z7q4ro
https://www.dw.com/en/india-could-maha-kumbh-mela-stampede-have-been-prevented/a-71447116
https://x.com/AFP/status/1877660404769321397?lang=ar
https://www.kumbhcampindia.com/when-is-the-next-maha-kumbh-mela-144-years/]
SPACE NEWS STING – MAMA/LEELA: “Now let’s have the latest… space news!”
MAMA: Yes, indeed, star watchers – now’s your chance to see a super-sized Venus!
LEELA: What! Venus is growing?
MAMA: OK, no… Not literally. But how you see it in the sky is growing – as in where it is positioned in line with our Earth means it’s at its biggest, brightest and best right now.
LEELA: Oh, yeah. We were seeing it the other night – weren’t we – and at first you thought it was a satellite because it was so big.
MAMA: That’s right. But as it wasn’t moving – like a satellite in the sky that circles the earth – or flickering like a star… we guessed it was Venus.
LEELA: Although throughout history it has been wrongly named as the “Evening Star,” hasn’t it?
MAMA: Right. Or also the "morning star" and that’s because it’s usually the brightest object in the sky – well, besides the moon ofcourse.
LEELA: And that’s because it’s close to us?
MAMA: Yes, and relatively large – being only a little smaller than Earth in diameter. But also, because its orbit is closer to the Sun than it is to us here on Earth's, making it always appear in the sky (when it’s visible) near the Sun, aka the mega spotlight in our solar system. And, and, and its cloud layers are highly reflective. All that means it's pretty bright.
LEELA: Ahhhh. So why is it seeming even brighter now?
MAMA: Well, Venus reached its highest point in the evening sky on the tenth of January and will sink into the sun's glare on March 22, with its brightest evening appearance coming midway between those two dates.
LEELA: Let’s see… that would be... hold on – Valentine’s Day!
MAMA: Yep!
LEELA: Well, isn’t that a coincidence! Because Venus is named after the Roman goddess of love: Venus!
MAMA: Maybe our ancient human ancestors know more than we think… And in case you missed the Feb 14 Valentine Venus, you still have a week or so while it’s especially bright and beautiful.
WORLD WRAP STING – LEELA: “What’s that? I’ll tell you what. That’s the halftime bell! Which means… it’s time to hear what’s making news around the rest of the world. Hold on tight, it’s around the world in 80 seconds.”
MAMA: US President Trump delivers another blow to Ukraine after cutting its president, Vladimir Zelensky, out of the first US talks with Russia on ending the war. Trump also falsely accused Ukraine of starting a conflict that’s ravaged its land and killed thousands of its people.
The outbreak of bird flu is hurting the US consumer as the price of eggs is becoming very expensive at just under $5 dollars a dozen. It’s also a big cost for small businesses that sell a lot of eggs. Never mind making many ask which came first – the chicken or the egg!
In South America a humpback whale swallows up a kayaker, who was out with his dad off the coast of Patagonia, Chile, before – thankfully – changing its mind and spitting the young man back out again. His father was in another kayak several feet away and filmed the whole thing – yes, we’ve got the link in our transcript.
And wait, stop teeth thieve! Nine dinosaur teeth to be precise, were found in France during a routine check on the Italian border when a Spanish truck was stopped. Police found what looked like fossils and sent them to be examined with a museum then confirming the dino teeth were nearly 70 million years old!
[SOURCE: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd0n5e1pdz9o
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/egg-prices-bird-flu-inflation-stores-limit-purchases/
https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/c2k5e14vwx4o
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqx95zyzyv7o]
LEELA: Well, thank you so much for that – wait for it… that whippity-whappity-zippity-zappity wrap of what’s making headlines elsewhere in the world, Mama.
MAMA: Oh, my goodness gracious, Leela. whippity-whappity-zippity-zappity Wrap. Yes, anytime, my dear.
NATURE STING – VARIOUS VOICES: “The call of nature. Get on your safari suite. Or squeeze into your scuba gear. And get ready to hop into a jeep. Or submarine. Submarine. Because Mother Nature is calling! Nature.”
LEELA: So quick question.
MAMA: Yessssss?
LEELA: You know how animals have like secret talents?
MAMA: Like how opossums have a protein in their blood that neutralizes, or reverses, the effects of snake venom?
LEELA: Yes! Just like that. Or like how kangaroos can jump more than eight meters in the air!
MAMA: Or how dung beetles can pull more than 1100 times its body weight, making it the strongest animal in the world, relative to its size, of course????
LEELA: And the list goes on. But sometimes these superpowers can inspire us mere humans to apply them to tech and innovations.
MAMA: Clever. That would be called biomimicry – as in mimicking, or copying, the strategies used by living organisms to help us solve problems.
LEELA: Bingo. Well, today’s nature story reveals the secret talent of polar bears, well, more of a special characteristic, of polar bear fur.
MAMA: Interesting. Well, I have just the new kid correspondent in mind to tell us this story. Animal lover Frankie Cabani.
LEELA: Yay! Welcome into the kid news pool, Frankie! Take it away!
FRANKIE: Thanks, Leela!
As many Newsy Pooloozi listeners probably know, polar bears live on ice formations in the Arctic – in places like Alaska, Canada, or Norway and, of course, Russia.
And they spend a lot of their time going back-and-forth from the super cold water into freezing Arctic air?
How is that even possible, you may be wondering?
Why doesn´t their fur gets hard and freeze, right?
My hair certainly would!
Well, some scientists from Norway wanted to know the same thing.
And they just found the answer!
Basically, polar bear fur is super… wait for it…… greasy.
Yep! It’s covered in a special sebum that prevents it from freezing!
Sebum, by the way, is something that most mammals have, even we humans.
It’s basically an oily substance that protects your skin from drying out.
But it turns out polar bears have super special sebum that makes their fur very oily and that means it doesn’t freeze!
The scientists now hope this discovery will help them improve de-icing products to be used on things like skies and snowboards, cars, roads or even airplanes.
This is Frankie Qalbani, reporting “fur” Newsy Pooloozi!
Did you hear what I did there? Since I’m new to the team I thought I’d “break the ice” with a pun or two!
LEELA: Oh, very good! We sure did hear what you did there. Welcome to the Newsy Pooloozi team – and don’t worry, our news pool is a lot warmer than the artic!
MAMA: Ha ha! Well, while we’re at it – what do you call a polar bear caught in the rain?
LEELA: Oh, no.
MAMA: Well, a drizzly bear. Of course.
LEELA: Oh, dear…! You can do better than that, Mama. Here – let me try. What do you call polar bears without ears?
MAMA: Ummm….
LEELA: Polar B.
MAMA: Polar bee?
LEELA: Yeah… I’ll let you just think about that one a while… And now let’s see what the lucky dip machine has for us this episode!
[SOURCE: https://www.npr.org/2025/02/04/nx-s1-5279474/why-polar-bear-fur-doesnt-freeze
https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/g28857063/most-extreme-animals/
https://polarbearsinternational.org/what-we-do/our-mission-history/
https://www.treehugger.com/amazing-animal-abilities-4869192
https://seaworld.org/animals/all-about/polar-bears/adaptations/
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.ads7321]
ODDBALL STING – VARIOUS VOICES: “Step right up, step right up… Have a go at the lucky dip machine… What’s it gonna be today, eh? An oddball, no doubt!”
LEELA: All I can say about today’s oddball is…. rodents to the rescue!
MAMA: What is this a Mighty Mouse tribute or something?
LEELA: Errr… no. I’m not talking about mice or rats for that matter.
MAMA: Then?
LEELA: Well, no ordinary rodents, that’s for sure. First of all, they’re from the Czech Republic – that beautiful central European country – but more importantly they’re being credited with saving a town over a million dollars!
MAMA: Oh wow! Impressive rodents. But ummm, which rodents are we talking about and, well, HOW?
LEELA: Well, queue the music, Mama.
MUSIC
LEELA: So, this story takes place about 40 kilometers outside Prague.
MAMA: The capital of the Czech Republic.
LEELA: Indeed. So back in 2018, city officials put together a plan to build a dam to protect the Klabava River and its population of endangered crayfish. But, well, they kept getting sidetracked in a debate over the land, which had been used as a military training ground for years and years.
MAMA: So, let me guess, squirrels to the rescue – stepping in to tell everyone they were nuts?
LEELA: Ugh. No, this story is not about squirrels either. Let me give you a hint – focus on the word dam.
MAMA: Ah, duh… You must be talking about beavers?! Those cute little rodents which are, well, not so little as they’re the second-largest living rodents on earth.
LEELA: Thanks for that fab fact and for using a phrase I never thought I’d hear you utter – “Cute little rodents.”
MAMA: Ha ha, true. Squirrels and beavers are the exceptions to the rotten rodent club.
LEELA: Hmmmm… anyway so, while everyone was fussing-and-discussing, the industrious beavers got to work doing what they do – building a dam.
MAMA: No way. I mean beavers do have excellent innate that means an ability you’re just born with innate engineering abilities, using logs and bushes to create a dam, or block, in a river.
LEELA: Never mind a superior work-ethic as they built the dam themselves while the politicians were still arguing over the details!
MAMA: Yeah, we don’t have the expression, “beavering away” – as in working hard without stop – for nothing, do we?
LEELA: Quiet.
MAMA: Well good for those beavers! It’s funny, too, because sometimes beavers – despite (or because of) their dam-building skills – they often they get a bad rap from landowners because they do destroy trees and crops in the process.
LEELA: Well, since these furry busy-bodies built a dam that’s created a five-acre wetland – which is TWICE as big as the one planned by humans – the authorities are pretty pleased.
MAMA: Yeah, saving a town a million dollars is no small thing.
LEELA: 1.2 million dollars, in fact.
MAMA: OOooh. I bet those officials are happy with the dam, indeed! (Better not to say that the other way around!)
LEELA: Mama…!
MAMA: Don’t worry, I’ll bea-ver-y carefully. Get it. Bea-ver. Hey, do you know how beavers get online?
LEELA: Oh, no…
MAMA: They LOG in. And by the way, I got your Polar Bears with no ears joke.
LEELA: Oh, yeah?
MAMA: Yeah, it’s just polar b because there are no ears, as in take the ears off the b-e-a-r-s, bears. And you’re left with b.
LEELA: Well, done. Took you long enough.
MAMA: Yeah, well, now I’m in the flow of things…
LEELA: OK, OK – time to “log off” now!
[SOURCE: https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250211-dam-fine-beavers-save-czech-treasury-1-million
FAB FACTS STING – LEELA: “And it’s time to wrap up the podcast with the top five fab facts heard today. Here goes…”
MAMA: FAB FACT NUMBER 1 – Nearly half a billion people are taking part in India’s Maha Khumb Mela – what’s that translate to?
Great (or mega) Pitcher Festival
LEELA: FAB FACT NUMBER 2 – The Khumb Mela takes place every 4, 6 and 12 years. But there’s also a super special “Maha” mela when there’s a rare alignment of the sun, the moon and Jupiter, which takes place how often?
Every 144 years
MAMA: FAB FACT NUMBER 3 – Norwegian scientists discover why wet polar bear fur doesn’t freeze. It’s thanks to a special type of oily substance that protects their skin from drying out. What’s that called?
Sebum
LEELA: FAB FACT NUMBER 4 – Scientists hope innovators might use the properties of this special polar bear oil for de-icing products. What is it called when innovators copy special strategies used by living organisms to help solve human problems?
Biomimicry
MAMA: FAB FACT NUMBER 5 – Beavers helped save a Czech town one million dollars by building a dam naturally. These cute, cuddly dam builders are also the second-largest living what on earth?
Rodents
And don’t forget, if you want to test yourself later on, then go to the Lucky Dip page of our website, newsypooloozi.com, That's like a swimming pool that’s pool-o-o-z-i, and take this quiz online in your own time!
LEELA: And that almost brings us to the end of this episode of Newsy Pooloozi! But first…
MAMA: We would like to thank the lovely Jyoti Chauhan for her production help and Julie Noce for helping write this episode!
THEME MUSIC
LEELA: If you enjoyed this dip in the coolest pool of news and information then HIT that subscribe button on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Alexa or wherever you get your podcasts.
MAMA: And if you liked this podcast why not tell a friend about it? Share the love of oddball news and information.
LEELA: And imagine the fun stuff you could talk about! Alrighty then, see you in two weeks back in the happy, splashy giant Newsy Pooloozi!
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