Hi there, it's time for another episode of News Bites!
I'm Nancy Sun…
And I'm Trevor Tortomasi.
In today's news:
A new ferry, a dangerous oil spill, and a "hidden" part of T. Rex.
All that and more, coming up next.
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澎湖輪舉行下水典禮
Ceremony for "Penghu Ferry"
Have you taken the ferry to Penghu?
It's a 4-hour trip.
It starts from the Kaohsiung Harbor, and goes to Magong Island in Penghu.
The old "Taihua Ferry (台華輪)" is actually quite big.
It can hold over 1,000 passengers, and can also ship 100 cars.
It also delivers cargo and necessities (必需品).
For the past 34 years, it had been an important part of Taiwan-Penghu transportation.
Now, the new "Penghu Ferry" is going to replace (取代) the old Taihua Ferry.
The Penghu Ferry holds less passengers.
But it has new facilities.
It has a children's room, a game room, a cafe, a lounge, and a dining area.
澎湖輪有許多新的設施，包括親子間、遊戲間、咖啡廳、交誼廳及餐廳等空間。
It also has berths (臥鋪) for 300 passengers, so you can sleep throughout the whole trip.
The ferry can carry 80 cars, 4 buses, and 10 shipping containers in the cargo area.
Officials hope the Penghu Ferry will become a new tourist attraction.
The ferry was built by the Japanese company, Naikai Zosen Corporation in Hiroshima.
The launching ceremony was held on April 4th in Japan.
Soon, the ferry will go through equipment tests and sea trials.
Then it will start running trips before the end of August.
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菲律賓油輪沉沒威脅海洋生態
A Sunken Oil Tanker in the Philippines.
Oil spills can be very dangerous.
And one close to the Philippines is a big threat (威脅) to the environment.
In February, an oil tanker named the MT Princess Empress capsized (翻覆) near the Philippines.
It sank near a rich fishing ground.
The fish and sea life there provides food and jobs for more than two million people.
The ship was carrying 800,000 liters of industrial fuel.
Local officials found the wreck (殘骸) on March 21st.
They had help from some Japanese experts.
But the oil inside the ship began to leak.
The Philippines Coast Guard tried to clean up the oil slick (浮油).
They used spill booms (圍油欄).
The booms were made from cogon grass (茅草) and coconuts.
They used these booms to try to hold the oil in one area.
But the oil still spread.
The oil slick now stretches over about 250 kilometers of the ocean.
It has polluted the shores of at least 3 provinces (省).
And it is a danger to more than 20 marine protected areas.
The ship is still underwater and oil is still leaking out.
Experts are now trying to get the ship out of the water, and stop the leak.
菲律賓海域擁有豐富的海洋生態，希望有關部門能把這次傷害降到最低。
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暴龍或許沒有暴牙
T. Rex Lips May Have Covered its Teeth
Science surprises us with new ideas all the time.
And here's the latest surprise.
A new study says the T. Rex's scary teeth may have been hidden in its lips.
Scientists had thought that the T-Rex's mouth was like a crocodile's.
That means the teeth show even when its mouth is closed.
But some scientists recently looked at a tooth from another dinosaur.
This dinosaur is a close relative of the T. Rex.
And the scientists found that the tooth's enamel (琺瑯質) did not show a lot of wear (磨損).
If the tooth was not covered by lips, it would be more degraded (耗損).
一項新研究認為，暴龍閉嘴時，牙齒並不會外露。
But other scientists do not agree.
They say more studies need to be done.
But scientists all agree on one thing…
They believe that finding a "dinosaur mummy" with the skin intact (完整) would settle this debate.
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So, in today's News Bites:
The new "Penghu Ferry," is going to replace the old Taihua Ferry.
The Penghu Ferry has new facilities, like a children's room, and a cafe.
It will start running trips before the end of August.
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An oil spill close to the Philippines is a big threat to the environment.
The oil slick stretches over about 250 kilometers of the ocean.
Experts are now trying to get the ship out of the water, and stop the leak.
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And,
A new study says the T. Rex's scary teeth may have been hidden in its lips.
Some scientists do not agree.
But they all believe that finding a "dinosaur mummy" with the skin intact would settle this debate.
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And that's today's episode of News Bites!