A teddy bear from Cumbria is launching into space to raise cash for charity .

Terence, an experienced traveller who has been to Iraq, will be the guest of honour on aviation legend Burt Rutan's Spaceship One when it flies above Earth. The mission takes off from California on September 29, and on his return the cuddly toy will be auctioned off in aid of the North Air Ambulance Appeal .

Spaceship One is the world's first private spacecraft, and is competing for a prestigious space travel prize. Chief executive of the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS), Graham Pickering, said "flying officer" Terence had been handed over to the RAF six months ago and staff had been receiving postcards from him ever since.

He said, "Terence was a fundraising idea that really took off. We have received pictures of him in a U2 craft, trying parachuting and even looking drunk and disorderly. When the RAF finally discharge him he will be a very rare bear indeed--we just hope he does not burn up on re-entry to Earth."

GNAAS, which needs charitable donations of more than PS2m a year, has three air ambulances .

Peter Bond, spokesman for the Royal Astronomical Society, said Terence's safety was not guaranteed. He said, "This is a new and experimental craft and this will only be the second time it has flown. During its first voyage it developed technical problems but hopefully they have now been resolved."

Since May, Terence has spent time with members of 100 Squadron based at RAF Leeming in Basra, Iraq, and at air shows with performing fighter planes.

Spaceship One will fly 100km (62 miles) above the Earth's surface, just breaking through the planet's atmosphere.

If it repeats the feat inside two weeks, it will claim the $10m Ansari X-Prize set up to encourage the private space flight business. What are the answers to this following set of questions: 1. Who will be the honorary guest on the spaceship?
2. What's the vessel's name?
3. Is it public or private?
4. Is it in a contest?
5. What toy is he taking to space?
6. Where's it from?
7. What's he going to do with it upon getting back to Earth?
8. Who'll get the cash from it?
9. Who speaks for the Royal Astronomical Society?
10. Does he promise Terence will survive?
11. How many times has that ship been in the air?
12. Did the first trip go well?
13. Why not?
14. Is it an old craft?
15. Who has Terence been hanging out with since May?
16. Where are they based?
17. Isn't that in Iraq?
18. Whereabouts there?
19. How high with Spaceship One go above our planet?
20. What's the amount of the prize they're trying to win?
Answer: 1. Terence
2. Spaceship One
3. private
4. yes
5. A teddy bear
6. Cumbria
7. it will be auctioned off
8. the North Air Ambulance Appeal .
9. Peter Bond
10. no
11. once
12. no
13. it developed technical problems
14. no
15. with members of 100 Squadron
16. at RAF Leeming
17. yes
18. in Basra
19. 100km (62 miles)
20. $10m

Problem: Edmund Halley was an English scientist who lived over 200years ago. He studied the observations of comets which other scientists had made. The orbit of one particular comet was a very difficult mathematical problem. He could not figure it out. Neither could other scientists who dealt with such problems.

However, Halley had a friend named Isaac Newton. Who was a brilliant mathematician. Newton thought he had already which he had done it. He told Halley that the orbit of a comet had the shape of an ellipse.

Now Halley set to work. He figured out the orbits of some of the comets that had been observed by scientist. He made a surprising discovery. The comets that had appeared in the years 1531, 1607 and 1682 all had the same orbit. Yet their appearances had been 75 to 76 years apart.

This seemed very strange to Halley. Three different comets followed the same orbit. The more Halley thought about it, the more he thought that there had not been three different comets, as people thought. He decided that they had simply seen the same comet three times. The comet had gone away and had come back again.

It was an astonishing idea! Halley felt certain enough to make a prediction of what would happen in the future. He decided that this comet would appear in the year 1758. There were 53 years to go before Halley's prediction could be tested.

In 1758 the comet appeared in the sky. Halley did not see it, for he had died some years before. Ever since then that comet been called Halley's comet, in his honor.
1. Who was Edmund Halley?
2. Of what nationality?
3. How long ago did he live?
4. What did he study?
5. What could he not figure out?
6. Who was Halley's friend?
7. Who was he?
8. What years did the comet appear?
9. Did they all have the same orbit?
10. How many years apart were they?
11. What did Halley predict?
12. In what year?
13. Did the comet appear?
14. Was he alive to see it?
15. What was the name of the comet?
16. How many years did it take for the comet to come back?
17. Did other scientists try to figure it out?
18. Were they successful?
19. What shape did the comet's orbit have?
20. Who figured that out?
Answer: 1. a scientist
2. English
3. more than 200 years ago
4. comets
5. the orbit of a particular comet
6. Isaac Newton
7. a methematician
8. 1531, 1607 and 1682
9. yes
10. 75 t o76
11. the comet would come back
12. 1758
13. yes
14. no
15. Halley's comet
16. 76 years
17. yes
18. no
19. ellipse
20. Newton

question: Jack and Mike are on holiday in France. Mike loves visiting old building. So does Jack. In the village Jack and Mike see a beautiful old church , but when they come into the church, some people are there. They don't know what the people are doing. "Oh! Just sit quietly , and act like the others!"Mike says. Because they don't really know French, so they stand, kneel and sit to follow other people. At that time, the priest says something. And the man who sits next to Jack and Mike stands up. "We should stand up, too!"Jack whispers to Mike. So, Jack and Mike walk to the priest. "What's so funny?"Jack asks in English. With a smile on his face the priest says, "Boys, there is a newbaby born, we ask the father to stand up." Mike shakes his head. He smiles and says, "We should understand what people do before we act like them!"
1. Where are they?
2. In what country?
3. Why?
4. Who does?
5. Do they speak french?
6. Was the church empty?
7. Who was there?
****
answer:
1. At a church
2. France
3. They like visiting old buildings.
4. Mike and Jack
5. no
6. no
7. a few people