UFO Clouds & Woman Roof Ninja

News Bites

Hi there. It's time for an all-new episode of News Bites. I'm Jacob Ingram. And I'm Brody Halverson. In today's episode we'll be talking about UFO clouds, and a woman roof ninja. And for today's Tasty Tidbit: The longest novel ever written. Stay tuned for those stories. ________________________________ 莢狀雲 UFO Clouds Have you ever seen a UFO before? UFO stands for unidentified flying object. ＵＦＯ是「不明飛行物」的縮寫。 What do UFOs look like? Think of metal plates flying in the sky. 想像一下天空中飛行的金屬板。 That might give you a pretty good idea. Recently, many places have seen clouds that look like UFOs, including in Taiwan. But weather forecasters (氣象研究員) said there's no need to worry. These clouds are called "lenticular clouds" (莢狀雲). But some people call them "UFO clouds" - that's a bit easier to remember. These clouds are thick in the middle and thin at the edges, like lens in glasses (眼鏡的鏡片). Sometimes they stack on top of each other like pea pods (豆莢). But they can also look like flying saucers (飛碟) or even puddings (布丁). How do these UFO clouds form? 它們怎麼形成的？ The Central Weather Administration (中央氣象署) explained when stable and moist air flows over hills, it moves up and down like waves. 當又穩定又潮濕的空氣越過山丘時，會像波浪一般上下移動。 When the air is forced to rise, it cools and forms clouds. 空氣被迫上升的時候，它會冷卻並形成雲。 When the air goes down, it warms up and the clouds disappear. 空氣下降之時，它會變暖，雲消失。 This process creates these special clouds. 這個過程會產生這些特殊的雲。 Can the clouds form anywhere? Not exactly. The ground underneath, or terrain (地形), needs to be a particular shape. So the clouds tend to appear in fixed (固定的) places. 它們通常在同一些地方出現。 For example, the area east of Yangmingshan sometimes gets UFO clouds. Have you seen them before? ________________________________ 屋頂女忍者 Woman Roof Ninja In the US state of Michigan, there's a big supermarket (超市)… …and this supermarket has a big sign (招牌) on its roof. It's so big, in fact, that someone actually lived inside it. Who? … a 34 year-old woman. The woman lived inside the rooftop sign for over a year. The sign had a small door that could be reached from the roof. She called it an "old safe spot" (安全空間), known only to her family. She had a computer, bed, printer (印表機) and even a coffee maker (咖啡機) inside. She got her power from an extension cord (延長線), which led up from the store. The woman wore black clothes and ski goggles (雪鏡). So the police gave her a nickname: "Roof Ninja" (屋頂忍者). How did they find out she was hiding there? A worker on the roof found an extension cord running into the door on the back of the sign. The worker opened the door, and he was greeted by the woman. Staff (店員) then phoned the police (打電話給警察). When police arrived, they asked her to open the small door and she did. She joked with them, asking how they got up there. They said, "Ladder (梯子). We're not roof ninjas." The woman didn't explain how she got up there. She had a job and asked to call her boss and get a truck for her stuff. But the staff helped carry her belongings. The woman was polite. She said sorry to everyone, then left without causing trouble. Sometimes, surprising moments and the kindness (善意) of others can change someone's life. 有時候，讓人驚喜的時刻和他人的善意可以改變某個人的人生。 "Roof Ninja's" story shows how important it is to help others and be kind. Remember to stay hopeful and keep going when things get tough. 當事情變得艱難時，記得保持希望並繼續前進。 ________________________________ So in today's News Bites, Recently, UFOs clouds have been seen in various places, including Taiwan. They are called lenticular clouds. They are thick in the middle and thin at the edges. They form when stable, moist air flows over hills, creating wave-like movements. They usually appear in specific areas with suitable terrain, such as east of Yangmingshan in the Taipei Basin. ________________________________ And, In the US state of Michigan, a 34-year-old woman lived inside a large sign on top of a supermarket. Police nicknamed her "Roof Ninja", because she wore black clothes and ski goggles. She left the store without causing trouble. The story shows it's important to be kind to others and lend a helping hand to those in need. _______________________________ 趣味小點 Tasty Tidbit And for today's Tasty Tidbit, Have you ever wondered what the world's longest novel (長篇小說) is? According to Guinness World Records, it's the French novel "In Search of Lost Time". It was written by Marcel Proust. It's 1.5 million words long! That's enough to fill about 4000 pages. Ain't nobody got time for that! ________________________________ And that's it for today's episode of News Bites! If you have a fun fact, a joke or interesting news story you'd like to share with us, record your message and send us your Tasty Tidbit to [e-mail], and you might hear it at the end of an episode. We'll see you next time for an exciting new episode of News Bites!