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2025-03-14 03.14.2025

Pi Day, Fossil Shocker, Emerald River, Cat Homecoming, Tour Timeout and Shutdown Showdown! Sponsored today by www.lxllearning.com/kidnuz

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Good morning and welcome to Kid News. I'm Kim. Today is Friday, March 14, 2025, and we begin with Pi Day. As a number, March 14 is 3-1-4, which all of you math whizzes no doubt recognize as the start of 3.14159, that super long, non-repeating number representing the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. Thanks to a computer, we now know more than 105 trillion of Pi's digits. After that, the number remains a mystery. Fortunately, for most real-world applications, scientists only need a slice of Pi. Even NASA only uses the first 15 digits or so, according to LiveScience.com. After that, even at galactic levels, the numbers are too small to make much of a difference. Look for some Pi Talk in math class today, and count on Pi deals, especially at pizza shops. A Jurassic-sized secret has been hiding in plain sight. For 20 years, students at an Australian high school have unknowingly been walking by a prehistoric treasure. A massive beige rock in the school's foyer was thought to have been covered in chicken footprints. Turns out, the distinctive markings are actually dinosaur prints. Sixty-six of them, from 47 different creatures, dating back 200 million years. Paleontologist Anthony Romilio made the discovery after school administrators called him in following the discovery of dinosaur remains nearby. He went on to find another rock at a nearby coal mine, according to the historical biology journal which published the findings. The Senate is in a high-stakes standoff as a midnight government shutdown looms. Lawmakers are set to vote today on a GOP-backed bill passed by the House to fund the government for the next six months. The majority of Democrats opposed the bill, which they say was crafted without their input. Unless the two sides come to a meeting of the mines by tonight, a majority of federal workers would have to stop working and temporarily go without pay. According to USA Today, national parks would also close. Environmental and food inspections would stop. Researchers at the National Institutes of Health would not be able to admit new patients, and IRS tax help may be interrupted. Essential services like border protection, air traffic control, and power grid maintenance as well as payments for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid would continue. Renewables are outshining coal in the U.S. energy grid for the first time ever. A new report reveals that wind and solar power together produced more electricity than coal last year, marking a major milestone for renewable resources. Solar saw a 27 percent jump, while wind rose 7 percent. One reason, an uptick in battery production and installations, making it easier to transfer daytime solar power into the evening. With renewable energy on the rise and battery costs falling, experts say this could be just the beginning of a major shift in how America powers up. Still, natural gas, a fossil fuel, and finite resource remains by far the largest source of electricity in the U.S., accounting for 43 percent of the mix. The piano man is pressing the pause button on his world tour. Billy Joel has announced he's postponing four months of shows to recover from surgery and undergo physical therapy. While the 75-year-old music legend has not revealed the details about his health issues, he reassured fans on Instagram that he expects to fully recover. They say cats have nine lives, but a Maine coon named Aggie might have used up a few. Her owner, 82-year-old Katherine Kiefer, feared the worst when her beloved feline couldn't be located in January when the Palisades Fire turned her Los Angeles home into ashes. Two months later, Aggie was found near their burned-down home, emaciated but alive and has been receiving much needed but costly care. A tearful TikTok reunion video of Katherine hugging her beloved pet has gone viral, reaching millions and generating over $33,000 in donations toward veterinary bills. The family will donate any extra funds to local shelters. Aggie was set to be released from the hospital yesterday, and her owner has one message for the world — don't underestimate cats. Still to come, the surprising ingredient behind a St. Patrick's Day river spectacle. But first, the Kid News Quiz. Today, March 14 is known as what? Pie Day What did students unknowingly walk past for 20 years at an Australian high school? How long was Aggie the Cat missing before being found alive after a wildfire? Two months If an agreement is not reached in the Senate, when will the government shut down? At midnight tonight And in our Kid News kicker, it's a decades-old tradition in the windy city. Tomorrow, Chicago's Plumbers Local Union 130 will dye a portion of the city's famed river green as they do every year on the Saturday before St. Patrick's Day. It's a holiday ritual that's also a bit of a magic trick. The dye is a vegetable-based powder that starts out orange, but seconds after hitting the water mysteriously turns bright emerald green. The river's vibrant color will begin to fade after several hours, but the celebration goes on all day with a parade and citywide parties. For those who can't attend in person, the greening of the river will be broadcast live, beginning at 10 a.m. Central. We've put a link on our website. Before we go, shoutouts for our teachers, Mrs. Lay and her Mustangs at Hunting Don Middle School in Huntingdon, Tennessee, Mrs. V.K. and her Tigers and Panthers at Tollgate Middle School in Pickerington, Ohio, Mrs. Fountain and her Wildcats at Yates Center School in Yates Center, Kansas, and Ms. Modlin and her Jaguars at Northeast School in Ankeny, Iowa. Thanks for listening, have a great weekend, and we'll see you back here for more kid news Monday morning.