Family News & Events

Family News & Events
Let yourself Le-go for Halloween

Let yourself Le-go with a themed Halloween Camp run by LEGO for children aged between 3 to 12 years in Arklow.

“Come to join the fun in our action-packed Halloween LEGO Camp, where kids can enjoy creating spooky LEGO designs, arts and crafts, baking, pottery, fun and games and much more! There will also be a spooky themed party on the last day.”

The camp is offered by the Brickx Club Gorey as a “creative social club for children that will allow them to turn their imagination into reality, have fun whilst learning and make new friends along the way”!

The camp runs for two to four days, October 29 to November 1, and early booking is advised as spaces are limited. The costs are:

€50 Euro for a 4 Day Camp

€30 Euro for a 2 Day Camp

For further information, please contact Olive on 086 064 7911 or check out Eventbrite.

Campaigners fight for right to cycle

Cycling campaigners around Ireland are working hard to get children cycling to school, despite issues with cycling infrastructure and traffic congestion.

A national campaign “Get to school on your own fuel”, ran the last two weeks in August and, with school back, cycling clubs are organising ‘cycle buses’ to encourage people to cycle again.

For example, the Galway Cycle Bus is in its third year and offers pick-up points to children along a defined school route in the Knocknacarra suburb of Galway city.

Allison Roberts of the Clonakility Bicycle festival told The Irish Times that “The bicycle is faster than a car. And if you practise ahead of time, wear rain jackets, children can arrive at school energised and happy.”

Campaigners point out, however, that cycle buses wouldn’t be necessary if there was better cycling infrastructure and called for further investment into bike lanes and other amenities.

Signs of life on Venus?

Gas found in the clouds of Venus may be “a possible sign of life”, scientists say. Venus’ clouds appear to contain a smelly, toxic gas called phosphine that could be produced by bacteria, a new study suggests.

On Earth, phosphine is associated with life, with microbes living in the guts of animals like penguins, or in oxygen-poor environments such as swamps.

Examining the atmosphere in detail showed that the planet’s clouds appear to contain up to 20 parts per billion of phosphine — enough that something must be actively producing it, the researchers said.

“We’re not saying it’s life,” said astronomer Jane Greaves of Cardiff University in Wales. “We’re saying it’s a possible sign of life.”

Venus is a scorching hellscape with sulfuric acid rain and crushing atmospheric pressures, but it may have been more hospitable in the past.

Scientists have speculated whether certain areas may still host life, and phosphine may be the first sign.