Romy News - 23 March 2024

Hi there! Guess what? It’s Saturday, and like every weekend, there are lots of amazing things to discover together! Today, we’re going to talk about our furry friends and how they understand words, just like you and me! Then, we’ll take a trip back in time to learn about when the Olympics began bringing athletes from around the world together. And lastly, let me tell you the story of Andy Warhol, an artist who saw the world in a very special way. Ready for some extraordinary discoveries? Let’s go!

Do you ever wonder if your dog really understands you when you talk to them? Scientists have wondered the same thing! They have discovered that yes, dogs understand words, a bit like us. Together, we will explore the details of a recent study, see how the experiment was conducted, and why it’s important for how we communicate with our furry friends.

Are you ready to be amazed? So, here’s what researchers found: our four-legged companions can connect words they hear with specific objects. This means that if you show a ball to your dog while saying “ball,” they don’t just think about playing - they actually recognize that word! Of course, some dogs are champions and can learn hundreds of words, while others know fewer. However, it’s hard for us to know how they truly perceive words without being able to speak their language.

The experiment is exciting: researchers played known and unknown words to 18 dogs without asking them to respond. They used very gentle devices to see brain activity. Guess what? The doggies showed a brain reaction very similar to humans when they recognize a word and imagine the object in their mind!

Thanks to this study, we now believe that all dogs have the ability to understand words, even if they don’t know many. This helps us better understand how we can live well with them and also raises new questions about other animals we keep by our side.

In summary, your furry friend might understand more words than you thought. How do you think this discovery could change how you talk to your dog?

Earlier, we were talking about the amazing powers of dogs to understand words. Let’s now move on to the question of the day! Gabriel, a listener in Grade 3, contacted me on Instagram to ask where the Olympics come from. An excellent question, Gabriel!

Have you ever heard of the Olympics, that legendary sports competition that brings athletes from all over the world together? This year, in 2024, the Games will take place in Paris, France! Let’s go back in time to discover the ancient origins of this global event.

It was in 776 BC, in ancient Greece, in the city of Olympia, that the very first Olympic Games were born. For the Greeks of that time, these Games were so important that they even measured the years in “Olympiads”! You might be wondering who had the brilliant idea to start this tradition? According to legend, it was the hero Heracles himself who started the Games in honor of his father, the god Zeus, after his legendary twelve labors.

Of course, the disciplines were not exactly the same as today. There were running races, but also rather tough events like wrestling or the pentathlon, which included five different sports. A unique aspect of the ancient Games was the establishment of a sacred truce: all wars between cities stopped during their holding, allowing everyone to participate or attend safely. Even the great philosopher Plato was an Olympic athlete in his youth!

After centuries of being forgotten, it was the Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin who revived the Games in 1896 in Athens. He believed that sports could promote peace among peoples. Since then, new disciplines have been added and the famous Olympic rings have become a global symbol of unity. Despite the wars and crises faced, the Games have always been able to adapt and continue to bring nations together. And in 2024, it is Paris that will have the honor of hosting these Games, continuing a tradition that is over two thousand years old!

Thinking about this long history, what new event would you like to see introduced at the Olympics? Share with me your ideas for sports!

After journeying back to ancient Greece, let’s return to the 20th century to meet an artist who completely shook up the norms of his time. Are you ready to meet a star of art who entirely changed the rules? I’m talking about Andy Warhol, an artist who saw the world differently and whose colorful and super cool paintings made him the king of pop art.

Andy was born in 1928 in Pittsburgh, USA. Even as a child, he loved drawing and scribbling everywhere. It is even said that his first works looked like cans of soup! Who could have guessed that these childhood doodles would become his trademark years later?

As Andy grew up, he studied art and design. But it was only when he moved to New York that he truly found his unique style. While working in advertising, he started playing with bright colors to represent everyday objects. One day, Andy had a genius idea: what if he did the same thing, but in art?

That’s how the Pop Art movement was born, with Andy becoming its star! In 1962, he painted his famous “32 Campbell’s Soup Cans”. Cans of soup… in bright colors… on a canvas! At the time, everyone thought it was crazy! But Andy didn’t stop there. He also created giant portraits of Marilyn Monroe, a very famous actress at that time. Pretty cool, right?

To get even more inspiration, Andy even opened his own studio called “The Factory”. All the trendy artists gathered there to discuss and create together.

With his art so different, Andy Warhol made people reflect on American popular culture. Some loved it, others hated it. But one thing is for sure, Andy’s work paved the way for many other artists in fields such as video and performance art.

Even today, after his death in 1987, Andy Warhol’s art continues to fascinate. There are museums filled with his iconic paintings, some of which are even on display at the Pompidou Center in Paris! Who knows, maybe one day there will be an entire museum dedicated to his very first doodles of soup cans?

So, what everyday and popular object of our time would you choose to turn into a colorful Warhol-like artwork? A soda can? Your mobile phone? A soccer ball? Go ahead, let your budding artist inspiration shine!

And there we go, our episode ends here for today. We talked about the awesome abilities of dogs to understand words, we took a leap back in time to the very first Olympics, and we explored the colorful and fascinating universe of Andy Warhol. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!

Don’t forget that you can always tell me what you think and share your ideas. Visit my Instagram and show me your creative ideas or tell me what new sports you dream of seeing at the Olympics!

I’ll see you soon for new adventures full of discoveries! Have a great weekend!