News item

National

Mark Nash has been found guilty of the murders of 60 year old Sylvia Shields and 61 year old Mary Callanan in March 1997.

Sport

PSG faced Barcelona in the second leg of the champions quater final and Barcelona won 5-1 on aggergate.

By: Luke Martyn and Sam Mc.Ilrath

Fantastic DNA

DNA is needed for cells to live, to perform their specific tasks or to multiply.

DNA is found in the nucleus of our cells.  It is a double helix, which looks like a spiral staircase.

The total length of DNA from all the cells in your body equals 6,000 times the distance between the earth and the moon!

Each human cell has chromosomes, that are made from DNA.

Banana cells have 22 chromosomes. We used the step-by-step instructions from the Cell Explorers at NUIG to extract the DNA from a banana.

 Here are our materials.

 First we had to mash the banana and add a solution of saltwater and liquid soap. The salt clumps the DNA strands together so they can be observed. The soap breaks down the fats in the cell membranes so that the DNA is released.

 Next we filtered the mixture to remove the biggest debris and keep a clear cell suspension.

Then we added Methylated spirits to the filtrate. Because DNA is insoluble in alcohol the DNA floats to the top, separating it from the cell suspension.

Look at the DNA we extracted!!

Mini Sevens and Choir

The boys from Killeeneen N.S, 5th and 6th class, went to Loughgeorge  for the Mini Sevens competition. They were up against  Barnadearg and Annaghdown in their group. They defeated their opponents to go to the semi finals against Carnmore but lost and Carnmore went on to win it.


On Wednesday 6th class made their confirmation and 5th class and a few 6th class children sang in the choir for the ceremony. The choir has received very high praise for their work and many people have commented on how brilliant we were!

By: Luke Martyn

National News

A 30 year old Dublin man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison with the final two suspended for the manslaughter  of another man in Co. Cavan almost two years ago. Kevin Moran with an address at Lodgeview, Cootehill Co.  Cavan but originally from Shankill in Dublin has denied murdering 32 year old Emmet Connolly on 29th of September 2013.

By: Caoimhe Kennedy

Mother's Day

For Mother's Day we made fingerprint pendants using polymer clay that we dried in the oven.

Science - Light Spectrum

Today we used prisms to  see the colours of the light spectrum.

Visible light waves are the only electromagnetic waves we can see. We see these waves as the colors of the rainbow. Each color has a different wavelength. Red has the longest wavelength and violet has the shortest wavelength. When all the waves are seen together, they make white light.

When white light shines through a prism, the white light is broken apart into the colors of the visible light spectrum. Water vapor in the atmosphere can also break apart wavelengths creating a rainbow.

Each color in a rainbow corresponds to a different wavelength of electromagnetic spectrum.

Baking Soda & Vinegar Volcano

Materials:

Baking Soda

Vinegar

A container to hold everything and avoid a big mess!

Paper towels or a cloth

Procedure:

Place some of the baking soda into your container.

Pour in some of the vinegar

Watch as the reaction takes place!

Result:

The baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) is a base while the vinegar (acetic acid) is an acid. When they react together they form carbonic acid which is very unstable, it instantly breaks apart into water and carbon dioxide, which creates all the fizzing as it escapes the solution.