Cornelia Clark, age 13, of Miami, Fla., for her question:

HOW OLD IS FIDEL CASTRO?

Fidel Castro became the dictator of Cuba in 1959 when he was 32 years old. He was born in 1927 which makes him 81 years old in 2008.

Castro was graduated from the University of Havana with a Doctor of Laws degree in 1950 when he was 23 years old. He was a popular student leader and immediately entered Cuban politics.

In 1953, Castro tried to start a revolution against the Batista government by attacking the Moncada Army Barracks in Santiago de Cuba with a band of about 170 young men. The attack failed and Castro was sentenced to 15 years in prison. But Batista released him in 1955, and Castro went into exile in Mexico.

Castro invaded Cuba with about 80 men on December 1, 1956. The attack failed but survivors, including Castro, hid in the mountains and waged guerrilla warfare until Batista fled Cuba on January 1, 1959. Castro then became head of the government.