4m children in UK do not own a single book, study finds

The latest report by the National Literacy Trust discloses that one in three does not have a book of their own.

The number has increased from seven years ago, the last time the poll was conducted, when it stood at one in 10 youngsters, meaning the number of children without books has triped.

The latest survey, which was based on a survey of 18,000 children aged between eight and 16, shows that boys are more likely to be without books than girls.

The researchers also found that children who are eligible for free school meals - a measure of poverty - are less likely to own a book than their more wealthy peers.

The findings show that children who own books are more likely to perform better at school. 
 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/8934429/4m-children-in-UK-do-not-own-a-single-book-study-finds.html

Gun Sales Shot Up on Black Friday

Gun shops rang in the holiday shopping season with a bang. Black Friday 2011 set the biggest one-day record of background check requests for hopeful gun buyers, eclipsing the previous record by 32%, according to the FBI. The agency saw 129,166 requests for the instant background checks required for all firearm buyers. The previous high was Black Friday 2008, which drew 97,848 requests.

Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/12/04/gun-sales-shot-up-on-black-friday/#ixzz1fe2mzCwG

Margaret Thatcher: a figure of history and legend

It is cruel to depict a living human being in fallible old age, but the new film of Margaret Thatcher, starring Meryl Streep, lifts her above political controversy and turns her into a cultural icon. 

The best way to understand why a feature film about Margaret Thatcher might work is to imagine trying to make one about other 20th-century British prime ministers. How about Safety First (Stanley Baldwin), A Period of Silence (Clement Attlee), Crisis? What Crisis? (James Callaghan) or In No Small Measure (John Major)? It doesn’t do, does it? Even Tony Blair, already the subject of several films, invites a satire treatment, not a life story. There is a case, perhaps, for David Lloyd George. There is the towering subject of Winston Churchill. And then there is Margaret Thatcher. 

 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/starsandstories/8932995/Meryl-Streep-as-Margaret-Thatcher-a-figure-of-history-and-legend.html 

Why are US teenagers driving less?

American teenagers are taking to the road in fewer numbers than ever before. What's behind this trend and does it mean the end of the car as adolescent status symbol and rite of passage?

If Ferris Bueller had a day off now, would he spend it on Facebook?

Recent research suggests many young Americans prefer to spend their money and time chatting to their friends online, as opposed to the more traditional pastime of cruising around in cars.

For the high school students in films like Ferris Bueller's Day Off and American Graffiti, cars were the ultimate expression of individuality and personal freedom - just as they have been for generations of Americans.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15847682

Toilet gaming technology targets urinal boredom

There is not much choice: stare blankly at the wall tiles, focus on shoes with face set in a grimace, or maybe whistle.

When men use a public urinal they are cruelly left in full view, with nothing to do as they answer nature's call.

Until now.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-15923438 

How can musicians keep playing despite amnesia?

Scientists are trying to understand how amnesiacs can lose all memory of their past life - and yet remember music. The answer may be that musical memories are stored in a special part of the brain.

When British conductor and musician Clive Wearing contracted a brain infection in 1985 he was left with a memory span of only 10 seconds.

The infection - herpes encephalitis - left him unable to recognise people he had seen or remember things that had been said just moments earlier.

But despite being acknowledged by doctors as having one of the most severe cases of amnesia ever, his musical ability and much of his musical memory was intact.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15791973 

Ear stretching: Why is lobe 'gauging' growing in popularity?

Ear stretching goes back a long way.

But you don't have to visit a museum or travel to a remote-ish part of the world to see it because the practice has been adopted in many Western countries.

However, it is not so common that it goes unnoticed. Stretched piercings do tend to stick out like the proverbial sore thumb, particularly if the hole is substantial enough to hold a small object.

For many people, there is an "ouch" or an "eugh" factor when they see someone with a substantial ear lobe stretch but for those that have it done, it is a thing of beauty.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15771237