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113th Congress 1 = Brian Schatz was appointed to replace Daniel Inouye, who died in December 2012. 2 = Cory Booker won a special election in October 2013 to succeed Frank Lautenberg, who died in office. 3 = John Walsh was appointed in February 2014 to replace Max Baucus, who became ambassador to China. Information Please, ® Database, © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Advertisement

Since this first Narnia book was published in 1950, countless children have followed the tales of the world that Lucy found behind the wardrobe. In the last 55 years the books in the Chronicles of Narnia have sold more than 100 million copies and been translated into some 30 languages. As a child, C. S. Lewis made up stories about a place he called “Animal-Land.” Like Narnia, it was inhabited by noble animals skilled in the art of war, among them “chivalrous mice and rabbits who rode out in complete mail to kill not giants but cats....

Now that you’ve gorged your sweet tooth with Halloween treats, how about feeding your brain? November 1 marks National Family Literacy Day. Approximately eight thousand literacy programs will hold readings, workshops, and family activities at libraries and community centers across the country. In a 1994 assessment of adult literacy skills, 21 percent of the adult population had only basic, or “level one,“ reading and writing skills. Compared to most of the other countries assessed in 1994, the United States showed a greater concentraion of adults scoring at the lowest literacy level (level one)....

General of the Army, 5 StarsGeneral, 4 StarsLieutenant General, 3 StarsMajor General, 2 StarsBrigadier General, 1 StarColonel, Silver Eagle PinLieutenant Colonel, Silver Oak Leaf PinMajor, Gold Oak Leaf PinCaptain, 2 Silver Bars1st Lieutenant, 1 Silver Bar2nd Lieutenant, 1 Gold Bar Fleet Admiral, 5 StarsAdmiral, 4 StarsVice Admiral, 3 StarsRear Admiral, 2 StarsRear Admiral (lower half), 1 StarCaptain, 4 Stripes or Silver EagleCommander. 3 Stripes or Silver Oak LeafLieutenant Commander, 21/2 Stripes (two wide with a narrow one between them) or Bronze Oak LeafLieutenant....

Looser Adaptations “More honored in the breach than the observance.” Description: This play, about a British military campaign, was filmed during World War II to boost the morale of British troops. Description: Simplified version of Hamlet as “a man who could not make up his mind.” Description: Employs a mixture of stage and screen techniques. See the uncut version if you can. Description: Made over several years on a shoestring budget....

“With so many options for entertainment, not to mention the increased amount of schoolwork in the teen years, busy and distracted teens can sometimes overlook reading for pleasure,” said YALSA President Paula Brehm-Heeger. “That’s why YALSA’s Teen Read Week national literacy initiative—aimed just at teens—is so important. It’s a time to remind teens that reading is fun, free and can be done anywhere, anytime!” A recent study by the National Assessment of Educational Progress reported that the number of 17 year olds who said they never or hardly ever read for fun increased from 9% in 1984 to 19% in 2004....

With its release from government duty finalized, the Queen Elizabeth finally set out on its maiden passenger voyage to New York on Oct. 16, 1946. It was a hugely popular and glamorous ship that was frequented by many famous people. Eventually safer and quicker airline travel across the Atlantic put ships like the Elizabeth out of business. And despite switching to cruises in 1963 and undergoing major renovations in 1965, it made its final Atlantic crossing on Nov....

by Tim Porter While generations of cloned mice and asteroids the size of Texas dominate science in popular culture today, a NASA probe is quietly studying one of the most interesting objects in the solar system, Jupiter’s fourth moon Europa. Slightly smaller than Earth’s moon, Europa is one of only four moons in the solar system with an atmosphere. More importantly, scientific data suggest an ocean of slush and water –as deep as 50 kilometers– below Europa’s icy surface....

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Second Place: $30,000 scholarship, Ravi Vikram Shah, 17, Tempe, Ariz., Corona del Sol High School, for investigation of changes in repair genes in DNA from tumors resistant to various concentrations of cancer drugs. Third Place: $20,000 scholarship, Parker Rouse Conrad, 17, New York City, Collegiate School, for study of two types of receptors crucial to understanding the function of nerve cells. Fourth Place: $15,000 scholarship, Sohini Ramachandran, 15, Fair Oaks, Calif....

This was Andrew’s second year in the national bee, open only to those who had won their states’ geography bees. He didn’t make it to the final round last year, but “experience definitely counts,” he said. “You know what the pressure is like and how the questions are going to be worded and how hard they’re going to be, and it’s definitely an advantage.” To get ready for the competition, Andrew studied for about eight hours every weekend and three hours on weekdays....

Younger Readers And Then It’s Spring, by Julie Fogliano; illustrated by Erin E. Stead Bear Has a Story to Tell, by Philip C. Stead; illustrated by Erin E. Stead Black Dog, by Levi Pinfold; illustrated by the author Charley’s First Night, by Amy Hest; illustrated by Helen Oxenbury Creepy Carrots!, by Aaron Reynolds; illustrated by Peter Brown Demolition, by Sally Sutton, illustrated by Brian Lovelock Dogs on Duty, by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent Dreaming Up: A Celebration of Building, by Christy Hale; illustrated by the author Extra Yarn, by Mac Barnett; illustrated by Jon Klassen Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns: A Muslim Book of Colors, by Hena Khan; Illustrated by Mehrdokht Amini Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs, by Mo Willems; illustrated by the author (Knopf) Green, by Laura Vaccaro Seeger; illustrated by the author Hippopposites, by Janik Coat Infinity and Me, by Kate Hosford; illustrated by Gabi Swiatkowska Just Ducks, by Nicola Davies; illustrated by Salvatore Rubbino Let’s Go for a Drive!...

Lizards who lose all or part of their tails can grow new ones. This is a good escape technique. A lost tail will continue to wiggle, which might distract the predator and give the lizard a chance to escape. Most lizards will have regrown their tail within nine months. Planarians are flat worms. If cut into pieces, each piece can grow into a new worm. Sea cucumbers have bodies that can grow to be three feet long....