CNN Student News Transcript: May 30, 2008

(CNN Student News) -- May 30, 2008

Quick Guide

Urgent Mission - Learn about a plumbing problem that's taking place in space.

Nepal Drops Monarchy - Hear about a historic transition in Nepal's system of government.

Hall of Fame Game - Check out a board game that's drawing interest from a hall of fame.

Transcript

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: Thanks for checking out our last show of the month, as we wrap up the week here at CNN Student News. From the CNN Center, I'm Carl Azuz.

First Up: Urgent Mission

AZUZ: We're just getting started, and already this show's in the toilet, literally. Water closet, wash room, loo or latrine; there are numerous names for a restroom. But what do you call it in outer space? Out of order! The international space station only has one bathroom. And right now, its number one issue is it can't get rid of waste properly. But as Atia Abawi explains, relief is on the way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ATIA ABAWI, CNN REPORTER: Plumbing problems are a pain, but imagine floating around in space and having toilet troubles. That's the frustration residents on board the international space station are dealing with, now that their only toilet is broken. It's an issue Leroy Chiao also had to deal with three years ago, during his six-month tour on the station.

LEROY CHIAO, FORMER SPACE STATION COMMANDER: It's not one of those mission-ending failures. It's just an awful nuisance if you do have problems.

ABAWI: Regarding this current problem, NASA says the toilet can still dispose of solid waste, but the seven-year-old, Russian-made device has been having trouble handling liquids. The astronauts found an unconventional method of fixing the toilet, but NASA isn't taking any chances. The shuttle Discovery, which is set to launch Saturday, will get rid of some of the items it was originally going to carry in order to bring a new toilet pump to the space station.

SCOTT HIGGINBOTHAM, NASA PAYLOAD MANAGER: Clearly, having a working toilet was a priority for us. So, some of these things that we didn't need for the next six months or so could wait until the next shuttle mission.

ABAWI: If all else fails, the astronauts can use the toilet on the Soyuz capsule, their escape pod. But in the end, there's nothing like the comforts of home.

CHIAO: There's nothing like coming home and taking a hot shower, you know, enjoying a hot shower and using the convenient facilities that we have here on Earth.

ABAWI: The spare parts are going to be hand carried from Russia to make it in time for the launch, and it will be arriving in a diplomatic pouch. In Washington, I'm Atia Abawi reporting for CNN Student News.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Mars Phoenix Lander

AZUZ: Staying in the stars, the Mars Phoenix Lander is stretching out its arm and getting ready to claw into the Red Planet. The robotic extension was folded up for protection during launch and landing. But now that Phoenix has arrived, it's time to deploy and dig into the planet's soil. The arm has four joints at the shoulder, elbow and wrist, and it takes two days to work out the kinks and be ready for action.

Missions to Mars

AZUZ: "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." That's truly the story of NASA's missions to Mars, fifty-five percent of which have ended in failure. The agency started aiming for the Red Planet in the 1960s, but didn't land there until 1976. That's when Viking One and Two reached the surface. The Mars Pathfinder touched down in 1997 and spent four months sending pictures of the planet back to Earth. Then there were some setbacks. The Climate Orbiter and Polar Lander were both lost on arrival. But Spirit and Opportunity shined through in 2004. When the two rovers reached Mars, they snapped pictures, collected soil samples and studied rocks, continuing their mission 15 times longer than originally expected. And now, with its arm almost ready for work, Phoenix's 90-day mission is under way.

Promo

AZUZ: Every Friday, we put together a ten-question quiz on stories we covered during the week. If you paid attention to the names of NASA's Mars missions, you'll have a leg up on this week's edition. Only two chances left for a perfect score this school year. Check out the quiz at CNNStudentNews.com and put your students' news knowledge to the test.

ID Me

NINETTE SOSA, CNN STUDENT NEWS: See if you can I.D. Me! I'm located in Southern Asia between India and China. I'm home to eight of the world's ten highest peaks, including Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain. My capital is Kathmandu. I'm Nepal, and I gained my independence about 240 years ago.

Nepal Drops Monarchy

AZUZ: Nepal has been ruled by a monarchy ever since, but not anymore. The country's newly-elected assembly voted this week to end the royal rule and change the system of government to a republic. The editor of the Kathmandu post called the transition "the biggest achievement of the people in the history of this country." As part of the deal, Nepal's king has been given two weeks to leave the royal palace and move to his private home.

Teen Obesity

AZUZ: Back in the U.S., researchers are optimistic about the results of a new health study. It reveals that the percentage of American kids and teens who are overweight or obese appears to have leveled off after increasing for 25 straight years. The study included more than 8,000 2-19 year olds. About 32 percent of them were overweight, 16 percent were obese, and 11 percent were extremely obese. Experts are pointing to better eating habits and more exercise as reasons for the encouraging findings, but said it's too soon to know if the trend is really changing or if these results are a statistical fluke.

Shoutout

SOSA: Today's Shoutout goes out to Mr. Kaeser's world history classes at Foxborough High School in Foxborough, Massachusetts! When was the first professional baseball game played? If you think you know it, shout it out! Was it in: A) 1871, B) 1898, C) 1906 or D) 1929? You've got three seconds -- GO! The National Association of Professional Baseball Players formed in 1871, and its first game featured teams from Fort Wayne and Cleveland. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout!

Hall of Fame Game

AZUZ: Some of the greatest players from that era are immortalized on cardboard, and not just baseball cards. Their faces were featured on a board game, one that's almost as old as baseball itself. It was collecting dust until a Missouri man recently stumbled across it. As KMBC's Jim Flink explains, the century-old toy is now a hot commodity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE SCHRIEBER, BINGHAM-WAGGONER ESTATE: This is the servant bedroom where the game was found.

JIM FLINK, KMBC 9 NEWS REPORTER: In an upstairs eve inside the Bingham-Waggoner estate, Steve Schreiber talks about an amazing discovery.

SCHRIEBER: And this is where I knelt down and saw the lid leaning against the wall there.

FLINK: Two discoveries actually: the essential parts of a board game; 115 years old in mint condition.

SCHRIEBER: We think we have one of ten.

FLINK: Ten in the whole wide world. The Zimmer Baseball Game was likely bought by the mansion's patriarch, William Wagonner, for his then six-year-old son. Made in 1893; sold at the Chicago World's Fair.

SCHRIEBER: As far as we know, these are the only, the only two game balls to exist.

FLINK: The game is in remarkable shape; the images of now Hall of Famers Cy Young and Buck Ewing as clear as the day this board game was made.

SCHRIEBER: It would propel the ball up here, and the person on the other side would take the bat and manually strike the ball.

FLINK: Brilliant, especially for its day, when players first discovered they were marketable.

SCHRIEBER: Zimmer was a Cleveland player, yes sir. He was not a Hall of Famer, but the game board company got him to endorse this game.

FLINK: Since the discovery of this game months ago, Cooperstown has come calling, ooing, awing.

SCHRIEBER: And that's when I found out this was the most sought-after baseball board game in the world.

FLINK: Those wishing to see it will have come here, to the place it has always called home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Off the Beaten Path

AZUZ: Throughout the week, we like to keep an eye out for any stories that are too crazy or cool to leave stranded on base, so to speak. So, we put them in the lineup and toss them right over the plate in our latest trip Off the Beaten Path.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS: Time for a little multiple choice! There are really only two possible outcomes here: Either this guy makes a record-setting motorcycle jump, or crunch. We'll let you ponder that for a minute while we take you to an event where everyone goes crunch. Of all the world's cheeses, not to mention this guy, this is the only one for which runners risk injury. Pain is part of the fun at this annual cheese roll in Gloucestershire, England. One winner was literally knocked down at the bottom of the hill! The official name of this game is the "Cheese Rolling and Wake," which I'd interpret to mean funeral. Legend has it that people have been tumblin' for centuries in this painful pastoral pursuit of cheese. Meanwhile, in pursuit of passengers: this very catty coachman. Need to hail a cat? I mean, a cab? I mean, both? This is your ride, complete with a kitty crazy for cruisin'!

DAN SOMERS, CAB DRIVER: I don't spend a lot of time at home. So, to spend time with my cat, the best way I figure to do it is to have my cat come with me.

AZUZ: But why stop at just a cat? Why not bring a dog, a cat and a rat, and let 'em ride together? This guy says he trained the animals to do this to show that anyone can get along. The sight of the cat cleaning the rat, rather than eating it, would make anyone a believer, just like Robbie Knievel! He's the guy we showed you a few moments ago. And believe this: 24 delivery trucks, 220 feet, one incredible leap into the record books. An illustrious landing from this trip Off the Beaten Path.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Goodbye

AZUZ: And that's where we come in for a landing. Hey, we're looking for ideas on the school year's top news stories. Head to our blog and tell us your picks. Have a great weekend.