Tom: Okay, it is Friday,March 3. I am Tom Hanson.Here we go! First up, the U.S. attorney general is under fire from Republicans and Democrats for misleading Congress.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions met twice with the Russian ambassador during the presidential campaign.At the time he was a senator from Alabama and an advisor to then-candidate Donald Trump. But when asked by senators during his confirmation, he did not disclose that information.
And this all comes as investigations from the Justice Department, the FBI and the CIA are trying to figure out what role Russian hackers played in the U.S. election. That is why Jeff Sessions said yesterday he is stepping away from the investigation.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions: But when you evaluate the rules, I feel like that I am — I should not be involved investigating a campaign I had a role in.
Tom: President Trump says he was not aware of any contact between Sessions and the Russian ambassador during his campaign. Some Republicans urged Sessions to step aside, while Democrats went a step further.
Senator Chuck Schumer: It would be better for the country if he'd resign.
Tom: All right, next up, turning it over to weather, the storms just keep coming.More than two dozen tornadoes were reported from the South to the Midwest yesterday.
The storm stretched hundreds of miles, whipping through the South and parts of the East Coast. Hail slammed Alabama;heavy rains flooded parts of Ohio;strong winds blew the roof off this car dealership in North Carolinaand toppled these trees in Tennessee, crushing this mobile home and injuring a young boy inside. At least five people were killed in the storms.
Parts of the Midwest are still cleaning up after the storm system roared through the area earlier this week.
Wishing all those people a speedy, speedy recovery.
All right, next up, Snapchat — the app known for shaking up the world of teenagers — is now shaking up the financial world, hoping to snap up new investors.
It was a big welcome on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange yesterday. Bright yellow banners and Snapchat executives rang in the opening bell.And all that fuss is over Snap going from a privately held company to a publicly held companyin what is called an IPO.
So what does that mean? Well, an IPO stands for “initial public offering.” That is when a company first decides to let people like you and me buy pieces, or shares, of the business. A privately owned company means you don't have to share any financial information, but when a company becomes public, all financial information becomes public as well, and you sell shares of the company to investors.
If the company does well, then so do the people who have shares.If it doesn't, then they lose money.Snap's IPO was one of the most anticipated for a technology company since Twitter in 2013, and Snap’s pricing values the company at $33 billion.
Billions! Not a bad day for investors, in my opinion. And get this —Snapchat founder Evan Spiegel is only 26, making him one of the youngest entrepreneurs to take a company public. Good for you, Evan.
All right, after the break, another extraordinary young person, who scored a perfect mark on the ultimate test of intelligence.
Tom: Allright, so you have probably heard of theIQ test. Some of you may have even taken it.It tests your intelligence, and if you score high enough, it can even get you into an exclusive society of brainiacs.Well, recently, one teen scored a perfect score, which is almost unheard of, andArielle Hixson met up with her at her home in London.
Arielle: When you think of a genius, who comes to mind?Einstein? Mozart?Maybe even Steve Jobs? Well, what about a student from London? Probably not what comes to mind, right?
Kashmea Wahi: I knew I was smart because I always got, like, top grades, but I didn't know I was, like, you know,this. I didn't know I could achieve this, so it was quite …
Arielle: You didn’t know you were a genius.
Kashmea Wahi is a prodigy. She has scored the highest possible score you can ever get on the Cattell IIIBMensa IQ test, and she is only 12.
Kashmea: So I wanted to do it just to, you know, for, like, general knowledge, to know what I know, and ended up with quite a good score.
Arielle: What was that good score?
Kashmea: 162.
Arielle: What is the highest score you can get?
Kashmea: 162.
Arielle: Yup, you heard it: 162 out of 162 — the best you can get. She is one of the youngest people in the world to ever achieve a mark that high.
Now people are comparing you to Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking,due to your score and just being brilliant. How does that feel?
Kashmea: It feels really overwhelming because, like, they are really, really great individuals.
Arielle: In case you were wondering,Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking are thought to have an IQ of 160, so Kashmea beat them by two points.The score places her in the top 1 percent of the smartest people in the world.
When you found out her score, what were your initial reactions?
Vikas Wahi: Well, we were astonished. We were really surprised because we didn't even expect her to clear the exam — forget about scoring the top marks.
Arielle: Some of you might be wondering,what exactly is an IQ test, and what does it measure? Well, an IQ test measures a person's "intelligence quotient," or general intelligence.It is measured by testing your reasoning and problem-solving abilities and then comparing them to general scores of people your age.
Most scores are between 70 and 120, with the average being around 100. When you score 140 and above, you are considered a genius.
Now,Kashmea, her score is all the way over here, with about 2 percent of the world's population. When people get 160 or above, they apply to join an organization called Mensa, which holds the 2 percent of people in the world who get the highest scores ever.
Many IQ tests have been controversialbecause some are illegitimate, and an IQ score can change over time with age. Things like stress, lack of resources or nutrition can have an impact on your IQ going up or down.
Now,Kashmea was motivated to take the test not for meritbut to get a free pass from studying.
Kashmea: I thought the test would, like, if I did well in it,I would have to study a little less. It kind of backfired because then expectations rised, so that didn't go as per plan, but still, it was worth it.
Arielle: After you got your score and you went to school, what did your teachers say?
Kashmea: Well, my teachers just said,like, “Well done, congratulations,” but I don't think anything really, really changed — you know, how, the behavior and, like, how I worked or anything, so that was actually good;like, if somebody or everybody started treating me differently, I would be really, like, worried and, you know,really insecure.
Arielle: But that doesn’t stop her from pushing her limits 24/7. Arielle Hixson, Channel One News.
Tom: That girl is going to run the world someday.So cool.
So do you think you could score a perfect score? Try this one.What is the number that is one more than one-tenth of one-fifth of one-half of 4,000? Is it 37, 41 or 43? The answer and more from the IQ quiz are up at ChannelOne.com.
All right, after the break, good deeds from an artist that is bad to the bone.
Tom: All right, it is the end of the week, and Azia is here.
Azia: With yourFeel-Good Friday.
Tom: Of course, and she is talking about celebs and music and giving back.
Azia: Well,Tom, you guys may know her as BadGalRiri on social media, but this global superstar actually is good at heart. Check it out.
Rihanna: So I made it to Harvard.
Azia: Rihanna gave an acceptance speech to a packed auditorium,but it wasn't for the Grammys. She was accepting a different kind of award at Harvard University.
Cengiz Cemaloglu: Her presence is able to inspire so many people from all around the world to be who they are and appreciate where they come from.
Azia: And for Rihanna that is the island nation of Barbados, where she opened a state-of-the-art cancer diagnosis and treatment center in the name of her late grandmother, who she says taught her compassion.
Rihanna: My grandmother always used to say, “If you got a dollar, there's plenty to share."
Azia: Riri was honored for her own generous spirit with Harvard’s Humanitarian of the Year.Her charitable efforts started at 18 with the Believe Foundation to help terminally ill kids.
Rihanna: I'm incredibly humbled by this, to be acknowledged at this magnitude for something that, in truth, I've never wanted credit for.
Azia: Her presence was overwhelming, as usual.Even the Harvard dean was a little starstruck. But students saw past the fandom, impressed by how Rihanna used her star power to take her healthcare and scholarship initiatives global.
Jasmine Chia: She brings that discussion outside of America. She says, “Hey, let's look at what's happening in the rest of the world.”
Azia: Her simple advice to students: Start small …
Rihanna: And I feel like our mission is to impact as many lives as possible, but it starts with just one — just one.
Azia: …and give without expecting anything in return.
Rihanna: To me, that is a humanitarian.
Azia: Azia Celestino, Channel One News.
Tom: That is amazing.
Azia: And two really important causes.
Tom: Absolutely. It is so cool to see someone with so much fame using it for good.
Azia: Absolutely.
Tom: All right, guys, that is it for us today. Have an awesome weekend, and we will see you on Monday.
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