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CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: A bicentennial birthday, a trophy that's being returned, and a perfect score: We've got it all for you in today's editing of CNN Student News. Hello, everyone. I'm Carl Azuz. We're starting with our primary story.
AZUZ: It's about primaries, the elections. There were a whole bunch of them on Tuesday, and some of the results were kind of surprising. A quick "Primaries 101" for you. States have Republican primaries and Democratic primaries. Candidates who win a primary then face off in the general election in November. That's what determines who actually gets the job.
Back to Tuesday, though, and those surprise results. One of them happened in Delaware. This was the Republican primary for a seat in the U.S. Senate. The winner was Christine O'Donnell. The surprise? O'Donnell, who's never won an election before, beat an opponent who has served nine terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Another surprise came in the Republican primary for governor of New York, where Carl Paladino beat Rick Lazio. Paladino and O'Donnell have at least two things in common: Their opponents were supported by Republican party leaders; they both had strong support from the Tea Party movement.
Now, you've heard that name mentioned a lot recently. The Tea Party is a grassroots political movement. That means it's made up of a lot of groups who work on a local level. Tea Party activists are challenging some of the more established parts of the Republican and Democratic parties. Tuesday's results are being called a big victory for the Tea Party.
One other interesting result from Tuesday. U.S. Representative Charlie Rangel won his Democratic primary in New York. Now, he's held that seat for 40 years. The interesting part of his win is that he's been accused of ethics violations. Rangel has denied those charges. And it looks like they haven't had much of an impact so far on his re-election efforts.
AZUZ: Officials say a permanent seal could be finished next month on the Deepwater Horizon oil well. There's a temporary cap on it now. Before that cap was put into place, more than 170 million gallons of oil spilled out into the Gulf of Mexico. Where did all of it all go? Brian Todd looks for an answer.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A deep-water CSI in the Gulf and a potentially ominous finding. Researchers discover what they say is a substantial layer of oil in the sediment in areas near the Deepwater Horizon spill. The team, led by a University of Georgia marine science professor, canvassed an area as close as two miles from the well head, and as far away as about 80 miles. In several samples from the sea floor, they found concentrations of oil seeping as much as two inches into the sediment. We are going to the source of this new finding. We are going to speak to Dr. Samantha Joye on a research vessel about 10 miles south, about 25 nautical miles east of the well head. She is on the research vessel the Oceanis. We're going to call that right now. I asked Joye about other scientists who question her findings, including those who say so much oil seeps into the Gulf naturally every year that some of this might not even be from the Deepwater Horizon spill.
SAMUEL WALKER SR., NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION: There is spillage from other vessels, there's leakage from pipelines, there's all sorts of things like that. And so, to find oil in the Gulf of Mexico, either in its sediments or in the water column, is not an unusual thing.
TODD: How do you come to believe that the oil you found is from the Gulf oil spill in the BP situation?
SAMANTHA JOYE, UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA RESEARCHER: We have samples that were collected in May, only in May, on the Pelican cruise from many of the same sites we're sampling right now. In May, this layer was not present. It was not here. This layer has developed over the past four months.
TODD: Joye concedes that they won't know for sure that this oil is from the Deepwater Horizon spill until they chemically fingerprint it when they get back to their labs. Joye discovered dead organisms underneath the oily sediment and worries about marine life that would feed off those organisms.
What kinds of organisms are exposed to this oil?
JOYE: Well, anything that forages to the bottom. I mean, any fish, any invertebrate, any squids, octopus, anything that is going to the bottom looking for food is going to be exposed to the material.
TODD: Then, Joye says, that could deprive other fish up the chain from a healthy food source. An official with NOAA tells CNN this finding does not necessarily contradict a government study issued last month saying about 75 percent of the oil from the spill was either captured, evaporated naturally or dispersed into the water column in microscopic droplets. The official says the oil in these samples could be part of the 25 percent that got away. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEO)
Shoutout
JOHN LISK, CNN STUDENT NEWS: Time for the Shoutout! What award is given to the outstanding college football player of the year? You know what to do! Is it the: A) John Wooden Award, B) Heisman Trophy, C) Cy Young Award or D) Conn Smythe Trophy? Three seconds on the clock -- GO! The Heisman Trophy is the only football award on this list. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout!
Trophy Forfeit
AZUZ: Reggie Bush is giving his Heisman back. The NFL running back won it back in 2005, when he was a student at the University of Southern California. An investigation found that while he was at USC, Bush and his family got gifts from sports agents. Now, that's against NCAA rules. The Heisman organization was running its own investigation. Before that finished, Bush decided on his own to give back the trophy. In a statement, he said, "I will forever appreciate the honor bestowed upon me as a winner of the Heisman." Bush says he wants to work with the Heisman trust to set up a program that would help other student-athletes "avoid some of the mistakes that I made."
Blog Promo
AZUZ: Did he do the right thing? Would you have given back the Heisman? Some of you might have different answers for those two questions. Tell us what you're thinking! Our blog is waiting for you at CNNStudentNews.com! It is, and has always been, first names only!
Mexico Independence Day
AZUZ: September 16th is usually a day for celebration in Mexico. It's the country's Independence Day. And this year is its 200th Independence Day, its bicentennial. The government's planning a huge party with parades and fireworks. But there are some people who just don't feel like celebrating. One reason why: the economy. Mexico was hit hard by the global crisis. Some Mexicans are questioning why their government is spending hundreds of millions of dollars on these bicentennial celebrations. Another reason some folks aren't too excited is because of drug violence. It's been widespread around Mexico recently. In fact, some cities have canceled their celebrations because of concerns about security.
Shoutout Extra Credit
TOMEKA JONES, CNN STUDENT NEWS: Time for a Shoutout Extra Credit! What is the highest score on the ACT college entrance test? Is it: A) 2400, B) 1600, C) 36 or D) 24? Rewind that clock to three seconds -- and GO! 36 is the mark of perfection when it comes to the ACT. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout Extra Credit!
AZUZ: Here's how hard it is to get that 36. Last year, less than one out of every 1,000 students who took the ACT got a perfect score. And that was among the seniors. Joshua Brakhage of affiliate KOTV introduces us to someone who did score perfection as a freshman.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE STUDENT: Don't you like zombie books?
JOLEE POTTS, JENKS HIGH SCHOOL SOPHOMORE: I love zombie books.
JOSHUA BRAKHAGE, KOTV REPORTER: She could be called the perfect student. Only 15 years old, Jolee Potts earned a perfect score on the ACT by accident.
POTTS: I just took it as practice my freshman year, and I figured I'd take it again junior or senior year. So, I don't have to now, so.
BRAKHAGE: We met Jolee in May, when she was excited about the math center and planetarium going up at Jenks High School. Her class schedule this year is packed with four AP classes, Latin and orchestra, where she plays the viola. She also makes award-winning documentaries. Jolee says going into her first college entrance exam, her one weakness was science.
POTTS: 'Cause I hadn't taken chemistry or physics yet, and there were a bunch of questions on that, so I guess I'm a good guesser.
BRAKHAGE: Her instincts for science could come in handy. Jolee wants to go into medicine or aerospace engineering. Her ACT score of 36 couldn't get any better, but says her celebration was not quite perfect.
POTTS: My mom, she was really excited. I just wish my dad could have been here to see it. He passed away in March.
BRAKHAGE: Just weeks later, the freshman was in the testing center chalking up a flawless score. Jolee plans to take the SAT, but says she'll wait until next year.
(END VIDEO)
Before We Go
AZUZ: There's an old Army saying that goes, "We do more before 9:00 a.m. than most people do all day." Well, here's proof! This is the fastest pit crew in the history of -- Okay, this YouTube video is sped up... a little bit. But these soldiers are still working extremely fast, stripping down a jeep to nothing but the frame. Afterward, they rebuilt the thing, the entire process reportedly getting done in under four minutes!
Goodbye
AZUZ: And even though some say "Jeep" is an acronym for "just enough essential parts," I'd still say these guys were truckin'! There's another edition of CNN Student News rolling your way tomorrow! It'll be Friday, it'll be awesome, and you're gonna love it. See you then.