Millions have people have watched the original Harlem Shake video on YouTube and there have been thousands of tribute videos made.

It’s hard to describe the crazy-looking dance, which is done to a happy, goofy sounding song of the same name, written by an American DJ and electronic musician named Baauer. Wikipedia describes the song this way:

“The uptempo song incorporates a mechanical bassline, Dutch house synth riffs, a dance music drop and samples of growling-lion sounds. Baauer added a variety of peculiar sounds to the song so that it would stand out.”

The videos—the original and the thousands of tribute videos that have been made since—start with one person or several people dancing. Then there’s a jump-cut to a roomful of people in costumes, helmets and masks all awkwardly jerking their bodies and happily flailing their arms.

The Harlem Shake has become a “meme” (pronounced meem). An Internet meme is a video, photo or idea that spreads from person to person and is altered or combined with other videos and photos.

The post A New Meme: The Harlem Shake appeared first on Teaching Kids News.

Somehow it sparks the collective imagination and before you know it, it’s gone “viral.”

That’s what happened last week with the “Ikea monkey.”

Bronwyn Page was in an Ikea (furniture store) parking lot in North York, Ont. on Dec. 9 when she saw something unusual.

A little brown monkey wearing a diaper and a tiny, expensive-looking coat.

The post What’s In A Meme? Ikea Monkey Goes Viral appeared first on Teaching Kids News.

Although the iPhone5 has some new features, it’s essentially the same phone with a longer screen (see the picture that accompanies this article).

The new phone is thinner, lighter and faster than its predecessors.

It’s less than 8 mm thick.

The screen is now a bit longer, at 4” (measured diagonally), or 10.2 cms. The iPhone4 screen is 3.5” (8.9 cms).

The new iPhone is also faster than the other iPhones.

The post Apple Launches Eagerly-Anticipated New iPhone appeared first on Teaching Kids News.