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CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: Hi, I'm Carl Azuz, welcoming all of you to CNN Student News on this International Women's Day, March 8th. It's the reason why March was picked to be Women's History Month, and we are commemorating it all month long here on CNN Student News. Today though, we're starting with gas prices.
AZUZ: It's difficult to tell this story without using the word "ouch," because so many of us are feeling the pain at the pump. If you or your parents have filled up the gas tank recently, you know why this headline is so big today. Gas prices are way up. And according to AAA, they've gone up every day for the past 13 days in a row. The total jump over that time: almost 34 cents!
Take a look at this here now. Yesterday, the national average for a gallon of regular was just over $3.50. And the state with the highest average overall? That would be California, at nearly $3.90. The state with the lowest average overall is Montana, at around $3.19.
Now, you see gas prices are different from state to state because part of the price comes from local tax rates. The reason prices are up around the country is because the cost of crude oil -- the biggest part of gas prices -- is on the rise, too. One expert told CNN that he expects gas prices to keep going up, so not much relief in sight.
Hawaii Volcano Erupts
AZUZ: This is not oil. It's lava, and it's shooting out of a volcano in Hawaii. Scientists say Kilauea was shooting lava as high as 80 feet into the air on Sunday. The state is no stranger to volcanic eruptions. That's how the Hawaiian Islands are believed to have been formed in the first place. The islands are the tops of a chain of volcanic mountains like this. Kilauea is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. Since 1952, it's erupted 34 times. And this lava you see here, it started flowing over the weekend: It's part of an ongoing eruption that started in 1983. It's happening in a remote area, so no people or homes are threatened.
Sound Check
ROBERT GATES, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I would tell you that you all keep me up at night. I think a lot about the people out here, and what you are having to put up with and the conditions you live in and the sacrifices you make.
Gates in Afghanistan
AZUZ: A heartfelt moment for Defense Secretary Robert Gates talking to U.S. troops serving in Afghanistan. He tends to visit that country every few months to see in person how the war effort is going. The U.S. is scheduled to start pulling troops out of Afghanistan in July, though Secretary Gates said some American troops could be there after 2014.
While in Afghanistan, Gates was also scheduled to meet with senior American military officers and with Afghan leaders. There's been some tension between Afghanistan's president and U.S. commanders recently after nine Afghan boys were killed in a NATO military operation. Gates made a personal apology to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who accepted it.
Shoutout
TOMEKA JONES, CNN STUDENT NEWS: Today's Shoutout goes out to Mr. Blessing's social studies classes at Union County High School in Liberty, Indiana! What is the name of this race? You know what to do! Is it the: A) Breeders' Cup, B) Juneau 500, C) Iditarod or D) Westminster Rally? You've got three seconds -- GO! These pooches are part of the Iditarod, an annual dogsled race in Alaska. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout!
AZUZ: Every year since 1973, mushers line up to spend more than a week racing across some of the roughest terrain you can imagine. Mountains, forests, frozen rivers; all in temperatures far below zero. That is the Iditarod. Tracy Sabo was at the starting line for this year's race to find out why people are so eager to take on this challenge.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
TRACY SABO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's known as "The Last Great Race." The Iditarod, Alaska's famed dogsled race, requires every field entrant to take a team of 16 dogs from Anchorage, Alaska all the way to Nome on the Bering Sea coast. We heard from the mushers why they mush, and some of those things might surprise you.
HUGH NEFF, IDITAROD MUSHER: When you're moving as one down the trail and they're all like one, they're like one animal almost. Sixteen of them working as one, and you're a part of it, you really are in heaven.
DEEDEE JONROWE, IDITAROD MUSHER: I really love Willow, Alaska. I think it's God's greatest creation, both the people and the scenery. And there are so few filters between us and raw creation when we're out there that you really get a chance to admire what there is here on Earth.
MARTIN BUSER, IDITAROD MUSHER AND FORMER CHAMPION: Iditarod is the flagship event of our sport. This is how the sport is done at its apex, you know, the best dog care, the best dogs competing in the longest, toughest, the best race.
DALLAS SEAVEY, IDITAROD MUSHER: Its just a great tradition. The Iditarod, this is the 39th running, and it's become part of Alaska just in itself, this race. It's just kind of fun for everyone, and everybody loves dogs.
SABO: It will take about two weeks for these mushers and their dog teams to reach Nome. The purse in this race: $50,400 for first place. Most of them will tell you they don't do this race to get rich. They do it so their dogs can finally come in under that famed Burled Arch along the Bering Sea coast. Tracy Sabo, CNN, Willow, Alaska.
(END VIDEO)
AZUZ: Great stuff. Our next report comes from CNN's Randi Kaye. It's about an organization in Atlanta, Georgia that uses chess to help young people make life decisions. How can "rook to king's pawn four" apply to more than a board game? We're gonna let Randi, and the organization's founder, explain.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
ORRIN HUDSON, CHESS CHAMPION AND "BE SOMEONE" FOUNDER: I am...
GROUP: I am...
HUDSON: ...somebody.
GROUP: ...somebody.
HUDSON: I am...
GROUP: I am...
HUDSON: ...a champion
GROUP: ...a champion.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After seeing a news report of several people being shot in a store robbery for just $2,000, Orrin Hudson, a former state trooper, was compelled to action.
HUDSON: I said to myself, our young people are going out for the wrong cash. That we need to teach young people cash with a K: K for Knowledge, A for Attitude, S for Skills and H for Habit.
KAYE: So he founded "Be Someone," an organization that teaches kids how to succeed in life through the game of chess.
HUDSON: Chess is like life because there's no blame in the game. I'm responsible. I will win or lose based on the decisions that I make, and if I make the wrong move, I get the wrong result. And I can make one move and never recover. So, you want to think things through before you move, because one move could cost you the game.
HUDSON [rapping]: We got to get in the game, get in the game, say it.
KAYE: But in an era where technology is king, Hudson knows this board game might not stack up with the latest video game, so he offers a fun challenge that always gets their attention: cold, hard cash.
HUDSON: Oftentimes, I put a thousand dollars on the table, and I say, "Hey look, anybody beats me, they get a thousand dollars." And I got their attention. I whip out the thousand dollars and I show them, and they're like, "OK, I'm in!"
KAYE: He knows the kids won't win, but that's OK as long as they learn that every move has a consequence, just like in life.
HUDSON: That's how I learn.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's how I learn.
HUDSON: I succeed....
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I succeed...
HUDSON: ...by learning.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ...by learning.
HUDSON: Make it OK...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Make it OK...
HUDSON: ...to fail.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ...to fail.
KAYE: And after losing time and again, the money doesn't seem to matter, because chess teaches kids to focus, think on their feet, plan ahead, and look at things from the other person's perspective. But there is one more move Hudson wants every kid to learn.
HUDSON: It's less about chess. It's more about making good decisions; it's more about creating value; it's more about never take. The good you do comes back to you. The bad you do will be sad for you. Every move you make has consequences, and if you make the right move, you will get the right results.
KAYE: Decisions that will hopefully change the world one move at a time. Randi Kaye , CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEO)
Facebook Promo
AZUZ: All right, at Facebook.com/CNNStudentNews, we're all about your likes. We've got a new video up there for you, introducing you to "the closer"! Plus, you'll get to see a display of my awesome aim. So stop on by, check out the video, say hello on our wall. You know where to go: Facebook.com/CNNStudentNews.
Before We Go
AZUZ: Finally today, we're heading to central Pennsylvania where a milk truck got stranded in the snow. Luckily, someone called in the cavalry. And even luckier, someone posted the video on YouTube. Look at this! We're not sure if the horses enjoyed being saddled with this particular rescue duty. I mean, if they had other plans, having to help this truck might have reined on their parade. But it is an opportunity for them to show off their strength.
Goodbye
AZUZ: Because pulling a huge truck out of the snow obviously takes a lot of horse power. And for one shining moment, that equine emergency crew was the mane event. That last one was for you all you pun neigh-sayers out there. And it's time for us to hoof it on out of here. For CNN Student News, I'm Carl Azuz.