Five stories that have North Texas talking: Seventeen spellers, including first grader Akash Vukoti, represented the state; golfer Jordan Spieth and Bill Murray paired up for a round; no one鈥檚 sure how an alligator got feet from a Dallas middle school; and more.
Around the time many kids learn to speak, Akash Vukoti of San Angelo started to spell. His first word was 鈥渟-p-o-o-n鈥� around 18 months, . Now, at age 6, his favorite word is 鈥減neumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis,鈥� which is a type of lung disease, in case you need to use it in a sentence.
What Vukoti lacks in years, he makes up for in . He participated in his first spelling bee at 2.5 years and was second runner-up in a regional spelling bee at 5. He can fluently read and write in English, Telugu and Hindi. And earlier this year, he made his television debut on NBC鈥檚 鈥�." He still finds time to do what he loves, though 鈥� jump on the trampoline and play with his big sister.
Vukoti is speller No. 238 out of 285 participating in the this week. Spellers ranged from age 6-14. The first grader competed in the preliminary rounds on Wednesday, losing on the word "bacteriolytic." have also spelled their hearts out, including of Coppell and of Houston, who will compete in the the finals today. . [Vox, Scripps National Spelling Bee]
鈥淚 say the word, spell the word, say the word 鈥� then I鈥檓 done.鈥�
- Texas and 10 other states are suing the Obama administration over transgender bathroom policies. Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit on Wednesday to stop a directive instructing school districts to let transgender students use the bathroom that corresponds with their chosen identity. The directive stated the right to choose a bathroom is protected under , according to . In March, North Carolina passed House Bill 2, 鈥渨hich prohibited transgender people from using bathrooms that do not match the gender on their birth certificate,鈥� and spurred the national debate. . [The Texas Tribune, Vox]
JFK wanted to send a man to the moon. Obama wants to send a man to the women's restroom. We must get our country back on track.
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX)
- Exxon Mobil is under fire to explain how it will address climate change. At the annual meeting Wednesday, shareholders of the Irving-based oil company had 14 resolutions to consider, eight of which pertained to global warming or environmental issues, . 鈥淭hey prod the oil giant to acknowledge that insurgent energy sources and climate regulations鈥攏amely those agreed to by most of the world鈥檚 nations under the 鈥攖hreaten its existence.鈥� Similar resolutions backed by environmentalists have been consistently defeated at previous meetings, The Associated Press reported. . [Scientific American, The Associated Press]
- Jordan Spieth, the No. 2 golfer in the world, was paired with actor Bill Murray for a round Wednesday. The 22-year-old Dallasite and the beloved comedian teamed up for the pro-am at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth during the this week into the weekend. Spieth told that he was looking forward to the game: 鈥淚 consider him a friend. Every time we see each other, we come up and have a talk. It鈥檒l be a lot of fun. I was really excited to hear about the pairing. It鈥檒l keep things really light today. I鈥檒l try and hold back on the 鈥淐addyshack鈥� references today.鈥� . [Fort Worth Star-Telegram]
Bill Murray hits out of the rough on No. 2 @DeanDeLucaInv pro-am.
— Eric Zarate (@zarate_eric)
- A rare sight 鈥� a 7-foot alligator was found outside D. A. Hulcy Steam Middle School in Dallas early Wednesday morning. The Texas Game Wardens and Dallas police caught the animal before 4:30 a.m. just feet from the middle school, . There鈥檚 a small creek and pond nearby the school, officials said, but where the gator came from is still uncertain. The game wardens鈥� office said it鈥檚 not usual for alligators to be displaced after periods of heavy rain, WFAA reported. The alligator was taken to a preserve in Dallas County. . [WFAA]
