Today's Show Transcript


RYAN YOUNG, CNN 10 ANCHOR: What's up, everybody, and welcome to another episode of CNN 10. I'm Ryan Young, filling in for Coy Wire. Hope you're thriving on this Thursday, September 25th.
Your 10 minutes of news starts now.
We're going to start today's show with one of the NFL's biggest young stars having an even bigger impact off the field. I'm talking about electrifying Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson. You can catch him running circles around his opponents on the gridiron every Sunday. But when he's not juking defenders and scoring touchdowns, he's hard at work on a cause near and dear to him, and that's childhood literacy.
After learning that more than 40% of Atlanta's third-grade students were reading below grade level, he started the Bijan Reads program and got the chance to go one-on-one with Bijan as he transformed the Falcons' home stadium into a massive book fair and a reading party.
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIJAN ROBINSON, NFL RUNNING BACK: This is just such a blessing for me, not only just to put such an event like this on, but a lot of these kids, like, you know, for them to experience reading and, you know, the literacy in Atlanta has fallen in the past year or so, for me to, like, bring happiness to them and want -- you know, encourage them to read and encourage them to just, you know, forget about anybody that's judging them or forget about, you know, sometimes the technology and just pick up a hardcover book and have fun with it, I can't wait.
YOUNG: But you're an NFL guy. Why care about reading? Why do you want to inspire them so they know about all the options they have in life?
ROBINSON: Yeah, so for me, you know, when I was a kid, I kind of struggled with reading, and, you know, when I was in third grade, I was -- I wasn't trying to read books, I was trying to play video games, and I was trying to, you know, do other than, you know, become better and more intelligent.
So, for me to, you know, be here and to support all of them and make sure that they're doing the right thing by picking up the book early and just instilling knowledge into themselves and into their lives, like, that's what's most important to me.
YOUNG: You got to read a playbook though, right? Don't you?
ROBINSON: I do. I got to read the playbook. I got to understand the playbook. I got to -- then I got to go do it, so.
YOUNG: OK.
ROBINSON: -- for them, like, if they can read and if they can, you know, not just read it, but like connect to it and understand with it, then that'll change their life.
YOUNG: What's the book that connected with you when you were this age, or what's the book that sticks out to you right now that may connect with them?
ROBINSON: I read a lot of Dr. Seuss books. That was the one, Judy Blume, like, those books were amazing. Percy Jackson. Love the Percy Jackson series. Well, I'm about to read them a book.
YOUNG: Yeah, yeah.
ROBINSON: And it's called "Be You."
YOUNG: Yeah.
ROBINSON: And for me, like, this book is so important. It's by Peter H. Reynolds.
YOUNG: OK.
ROBINSON: Only because like, you know, I believe all these kids are so unique in their own way. And for me, like, I'm unique in my own way. And if I can teach them to just, you know, be expressive.
YOUNG: Before we go, the smile on your face, it seems like it's paying you back.
ROBINSON: Oh, yeah.
YOUNG: What does it feel like right now? Because you were hearing these kids. What does that feel like?
ROBINSON: Man, I mean, I'm so ecstatic. This is like, so amazing. You know, I believed it was going to be, like, an awesome event, but now that I'm seeing, like, just how massive this really is and all these kids being here and smiling and, you know, being with each other, like, man, I can't ask for nothing more.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: Time for 10-second trivia. How many stitches are there on a regulation baseball?
96? 108? 216? 316?
If you said either 108 or 216, home run. A baseball features 108 double stitches equal to 216 single stitches. And get this, every Major League Baseball is still hand-stitched.
Speaking of America's favorite pastime, there's some striking news in the world of Major League Baseball. Robot umpires? They are getting called up to the big leagues.
But if you're picturing the Iron Giant or Wally holding it down at home plate, don't get your hopes up just yet. Human umpires will still call the shots, but teams will now be able to challenge up to two calls per game using an automated ball strike system. ABS for short, the system has been used in the minor leagues for years, but was just approved by the MLB's competition committee for use starting next season.
ABS saw its first Major League action at this year's All-Star Game, where four of the five challenges were successful. The league hopes the system will help minimize foul play, while umps called roughly 94% of pitches correctly. More than 60% of ejections last year were from arguments over those calls.
Here's hoping the robo-helpers will help turn down the temperature at home plate, leading to more play balls, unless you're out of here.
The next story may be the coolest thing you'll see all week. A massive 540-foot-tall nuclear cooling tower demolished in seconds, with drones providing some one-of-a-kind views. It was destroyed during controlled implosion at a site just outside of Nashville, Tennessee. The tower was built nearly 50 years ago as part of a planned nuclear plant that never was finished. The Tennessee Valley Authority says it had become a safety hazard in recent years due to unauthorized visitors. But it won't be a pile of rubble for long. The concrete and steel will be recycled for use in future projects.
Turning now from that big boom to a big bloom. A month-long toxic algae bloom is devastating South Australia's coral reefs. The bloom is turning the normal, vibrant habitats into underwater graveyards, and its impact is being felt both in and out of the water. Our Derek Van Dam has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Ecologists say the toxic algae bloom off the coast of southern Australia is devastating the marine life ecosystem there.
SCOTT BENNETT, CO-FOUNDER, GREAT SOUTHERN REEF FOUNDATION: It's hard to overstate how devastating this algal bloom has been. It has really impacted the entire food web, from the habitat forming species like our seaweeds and sponges and things that make up these reefs all the way through to the highest trophic levels.
So, lots of sharks, lots of rays. We've had recorded over ten White sharks washing up on the beach, lots of dozens of species of Rays.
VAN DAM: And algal bloom is an intense concentration of microalgae, often fueled by a marine heat wave. Since March, it has killed more than 17,000 animals from over 470 species of marine life, according to observations on the citizen science site " iNaturalist."
It's not only impacting sea species, but also the people on land who depend on the sea for their livelihood.
BENNETT: This has just paralyzed the fishing industry, the tourism industry and just really devastated the local population.
So, South Australians are grieving right now. This is their really beloved marine environment which has been impacted. And everybody -- everybody's feeling it.
VAN DAM: South Australia's premier, Peter Malinauskas, visited the Yorke Peninsula on Monday to meet impacted communities. A week after announcing US$ 9.2 million in aid matched by the federal government.
PETER MALINAUSKAS, SOUTH AUSTRALIAN PREMIER: I want to be really clear about this. This is a natural disaster. I don't think -- I think politicians can do themselves a disservice when they get caught up in technicalities. This is a natural disaster. It should be acknowledged as such.
VAN DAM: Scientists say worldwide marine heatwaves are increasing in size, duration and frequency.
BENNETT: So we -- I think we can expect to see this occur elsewhere. And it's important we don't treat it as a one-off, rare occurrence.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
YOUNG: Today's story, getting a 10 out of 10, is wheely exciting. An after-school program in Yuma, Arizona is helping students swap screen time for pedal time. Having clear thoughts while I'm riding. That program was able to get its kickstart with a donation of a dozen bikes from Wheel Fun, an Arizona nonprofit that provides free mountain bikes to kids and underserved communities. While the students are learning a lot about safety and bike maintenance, they are also lessons that include math and science as the kids learn about the bikes and gear and speed ratios.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're looking forward to that one thing part of their day, but then we're able to connect how the science and technology and mathematics that they're seeing in class applies to the things that they're passionate about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: Still, the mountain bike coach says the main goal is having fun.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gets them into mountain biking and building their confidence, their physical fitness, and then those life skills they need through socialization, and most importantly, getting them off the iPad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: Less screens, more speed. I love it. Talk about gearing up for success.
All right, superstars, time for our favorite part of the show. Our first shout out is going to Ms. Lawrence at the Randolph School in Huntsville, Alabama. We're so glad you enjoyed yesterday's episode about the Artemis program. And from our Instagram followers, Ms. C at the St. Anthony School in Clarksville, Indiana. Go Bears.
Hope you had an amazing Friday Eve. We're almost there. Y'all remember kindness is the one gift anyone can give.
We'll see you right back here tomorrow. I'm Ryan Young, and this is CNN 10.