Ripped from the Headlines: March 2022: This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for March 5–March 11, 2022

It's rare to get a glimpse of the northern lights in the contiguous United States, but scientists say that March is one of the best months to look for them. The aurora borealis appears as glowing green bands of light across the dark sky in northernmost regions, with midnight being the ideal time to watch for the elusive, brilliant light show. Aurora was the Roman goddess of the dawn, a name derived from a root meaning "to shine."

A team of chemists has developed a way to alter the genes of bacteria so that it will consume carbon dioxide and carbon oxide and convert them to useful chemicals. The genetically engineered single-celled organisms can devour industrial emissions and produce acetone and isopropanol, which are used in products like light bulbs and hand sanitizer. Producing these chemicals normally involves using fossil fuels, but the specially-designed bacteria makes the process carbon-neutral.

A new map of the United States details areas of the country where biodiversity is most at risk. California stands out as the state with the highest number of animals and plants that currently face a possibility of global extinction. It's the most comprehensive such map ever produced, representing individual species of mammals, bees, fish, flowering plants, and other living organisms. Biodiversity comes from bio-, "life," and a root meaning "turned different ways."

The high school in Hicks, Louisiana, hasn't had a usable gym since Hurricane Laura tore through the town in 2020. The girls' basketball team didn't let the situation slow a winning streak that began in 2019: this week they won their fourth consecutive state championship. The team's focus on victory meant 4:30 a.m. practices at neighboring schools and shooting drills on a homemade dirt court. During pregame warmups, the Hicks High Pirates wore t-shirts that said "No Gym, No Problem."

Part of a rocket that's been floating around in space for nearly a decade is projected to collide with the moon on March 11, according to astronomers. The debris, which may be from a 2014 Chinese lunar expedition, will be the first known space junk to accidentally slam into the moon. It will be moving about 5,500 miles per hour when it hits the lunar surface, but it won't be visible from Earth. Collide has Latin roots meaning "together" and "to strike."

On March 6, Vice President Harris traveled to Alabama to commemorate "Bloody Sunday," the day in 1965 when police officers attacked civil rights marchers in Selma. The activists were demonstrating for equal voting rights when they were met with violence 57 years ago. Harris said they fought for "the most fundamental right of American citizenship: the right to vote." She used the commemoration to address new voting restrictions and current efforts to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act.

Eight mountain climbers who plan to scale Mount Kilimanjaro this week have something unusual in common: each has a single kidney, having donated the other to a patient in need. These donors are using their expedition to raise awareness of live organ donation and draw attention to the fact that you can give up a kidney and remain physically fit enough to climb the tallest mountain in Africa. Donor is derived from a Latin root meaning "gift."

A sweetly supportive hotline that launched last month is receiving as many as 700 calls per hour. Callers can listen to a variety of encouragement and advice recorded by students at a California elementary school. Cheerful messages like "Bro, you're looking great!" and "Be grateful for yourself!" are meant to boost people's low spirits and help get them through difficult times. Encouragement contains a Latin root, cor, meaning "heart."

A team of researchers and explorers has found the remains of Ernest Shackleton's ship, the Endurance, which sank during a 1915 Antarctic expedition. The vessel has rested 10,000 feet below the surface of some of the world's coldest waters for over a century and is relatively intact. Shackleton abandoned his voyage when the ship became trapped in ice, but he's famous for braving deadly conditions and rescuing his entire crew of 27 after enduring more than 18 months of adversity.

Three wildfires in Florida's panhandle forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 people. At a March 6 news briefing, Governor Ron DeSantis said the fast-moving fires had burned about 9,000 acres and compelled residents in counties near Tallahassee to leave their homes. Area schools were closed on March 7, but most of them reopened within a day or two, as evacuation orders were lifted and people returned home. The Latin root of evacuation is evacuare, "to empty."

Owners of a food truck in Germany have hit on a creative way to make the best of invasive species: by cooking and serving them to customers. After learning that Louisiana crawfish were environmentally harmful in their area, Lukas and Juliane Bosch began offering the small crustaceans at Holycrab, their Berlin-based food truck. Also on the menu are non-native species like Chinese crab, carp, and even raccoon. The Latin root of invasive is invadere, "go into or attack."

Several recent studies are demonstrating a drop in literacy among elementary school students since the pandemic began in 2020. Overall, about 30 percent of children in the youngest grades are falling short of reading benchmarks, with a Virginia study showing early reading ability at a 20-year low. Black, Hispanic, and low-income students have fallen the furthest behind in reading and writing skills, according to the studies. Literacy shares a root with letter.

Negotiations continued this week between Major League Baseball and the players' union. One week of the regular baseball season has already been canceled, and more games will be cut unless the two sides come to an agreement. The dispute involves minimum player salaries, a possible post-season series, and an international draft, among many other issues. The bargaining has lasted more than 100 days so far.

Analysis by the Anti-Corruption Data Collective has revealed that Russian oligarchs have donated millions of dollars to U.S. universities, museums, and philanthropies. This elite and powerful group, which is closely aligned with Russian President Vladimir Putin, controls dozens of multinational corporations, including many that produce petroleum and natural gas. The Greek oligarkhia, meaning "government by the few," is the source of oligarch.

A growing number of wildlife biologists are studying the personalities of individual animals in an effort to better understand and protect entire species. These scientists measure five traits in wild animals: boldness, aggressiveness, activity, the tendency to explore, and sociability. Experts say that active, adventurous animals appear to be better suited to adapt to a changing climate, and that their individual survival can help species evolve to be more resilient.

A national poll showed that one in three older adults postponed or canceled doctor's appointments during the past two years. Since the start of the pandemic, millions of patients delayed dentist visits, medical checkups, surgical procedures, and screening tests. Although most rescheduled these deferred healthcare visits, experts are concerned about the large number of patients who still haven't made appointments. Postpone has a Latin root which means "put after."

A study of the Amazon ecosystem reveals that it's in danger of changing from a rainforest to a savanna. The possible shift can be attributed to logging by humans, as well as the warming climate, which has caused extreme drought and wildfires. If the Amazon transforms into a treeless, grassy plain, it will no longer store billions of tons of carbon, making the goal of removing greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere even harder to achieve.

Analysis of ancient rock art at a site in Colombia suggests that it may depict long-extinct animals, including a giant sloth. If the enormous, long-armed mammal really is represented in the ocher drawings, it means the illustrations are much older than previously thought. The sloth got its name in the early 17th century, from its slow movements and habit of spending hours hanging lazily upside-down in trees. Sloth means "idleness."

Multiple tornadoes touched down in central and southwest Iowa over the weekend, leaving seven people dead. The largest of the violently rotating storms remained on the ground for almost 70 miles, its winds reaching 170 miles per hour. Houses, power lines, and cars were sucked up by the swirling air and tossed back to the ground. Etymologists believe that tornado is a mistranslation of the Spanish tronada, "thunderstorm."

Hundreds of American veterans have offered to join Ukrainians in their fight against invading Russian forces. Around the U.S., people who served as active military members in the past are enlisting as volunteers in Ukraine. The veterans responded to a request last week by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for help from experienced foreign soldiers.