Saturday, November 30, 2019

Benjamin Franklin - Hiram Powers


We just learned about the Water Nymph and Bitterna.

Another work of American sculpture is the sculpture of Benjamin Franklin by Hiram Powers.

Hiram grew up in Vermont and Ohio, where he learned how to do some sculpture.
When he grew up he moved to Washington D.C. to get better jobs and get noticed for his sculpture, and made sculptures of some of the American heroes like Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin.

Most of the very famous sculptors of that time were living in Italy, where there were a lot more places to make the art, and it was also a lot easier to get the marble and other things he needed to use.

So Powers moved to Florence, Italy and would make some sculptures there and send them back to America.


(from: wikipedia - hiram powers)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Seated Yuima - Jōkei

Friday, November 29, 2019

Russian - Dog, Cat


We just learned that to ask if someone speaks Russian you say Ты говоришь по-русски? or Вы говорите по русски?.

To say dog in Russian, you say собака (sobaka) and it sounds like soh-bah-kah 文A

To say cat in Russian, you say кошка (koshka) and it sounds like koh-sh-kah 文A

Also in Russian, cats say Мяу-мяу (myaoo myaoo) and dogs say Гав-гав (gahf-gahf)

russian language
(from: wikipedia - russian academy of sciences)

Norwegian: hund, katt

Greek: σκύλος (skýlos), γάτα (gáta)

ASL: dog, cat

Italian: cane, gatto

German: Hunt, Katze

Spanish: perro, gato

French: chien, chat

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Valve Handle


We just learned about the Valve Port.

Another part of a valve is the Valve Handle.

To open or close a valve, you can turn the handle one way or another.
This is just like the faucet that you use on a sink or a water valve outside the house.

There are a lot of types of valve handles.
The one on the faucet outside the house is usually a wheel handle that spins around.
The handle on the sink faucet is usually some kind of lever handle.
The handle underneath the sink that connects to the water line is usually a T shaped handle.

Some valves don't have handles because they are automatically opened by some other type of machine.


(from: wikipedia - valve)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Jules Verne - From the Earth to the Moon

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Rhopalium


We just learned about the Lappet.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Rhopalium.

Remember we learned about the lappet that goes the bell and dents in on some spots.
The part where the bell dents in toward the middle is called the Rhopalium.

In these rhopalium are things that jellyfish can use to sense light and movement.


(from: wikipedia - rhopalium)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod Suckers

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Rod Cells


We just learned about the Zonule of Zinn.

Another part of the eye is the Rod Cells.

In the back of the eye at the retina there are things called Rods that help take in light and turn it into a message for your brain to understand what you are seeing.

An adult human has about 92 million rods in one eye!
These rods mostly help see brightness and darkness, and help people see better at night.


(from: wikipedia - rod cell)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: amelogenesis

Monday, November 25, 2019

East Antarctica


We just started learning about Antarctica.

Antarctica is split up into two parts, Wast and East Antarctica.

The East part is the bigger part, and is sometimes just called Greater Antarctica.
It is closer to Africa and Australia, and the Indian Ocean.
The East and West parts of Antarctica are separated by a 2,000 mile long mountain range.


(from: wikipedia - west antarctica)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Forbidden City

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Anno Domini


We just learned about the Hagia Sophia ancient church.

Another part of early Christianity is Anno Domini.

When we talk about what year it is, we sometimes put the letters AD at the end, like 2019 AD.

The AD stands for "Anno Domini" which means "Year Of"
"Anno Domini" is just a short way to say "anno Domini nostri Jesu Christi" which means "year of our Jesus Christ".

A long time ago a man named Dionysius Exiguus was working on a new calendar to be different than the one that the old emperor Diocletian had used.
Diocletian was very bad for Christians and had many of them killed.

So Dionysius made a new calendar and said that the year was 525 AD.
By putting AD at the end, he was taking away the naming of the years from the bad Diocletian and giving it to Jesus.

In the new AD calendar, people believe that Jesus was born around 1 AD.
The time before that we call "BC" for "Before Christ".

In the old days before people used English they used "aCn" which was for "Ante Christum Natum" meaning "before Christ's birth".


(from: wikipedia - anno domini)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Split of Christianity and Judaism

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Water Nymph and Bitterna - William Rush


We just learned about the Chacmool statue of the person laying down.

Let's learn about some sculpture from America long ago.

In the early 1800s there were not a lot of famous sculptures until William Rush came along.

His first famous sculpture was the Water Nymph and Bittern.

In the city of Philadelphia Pennsylvania, there was a river called the Schuylkill River that brought water into the city.
William Rush was asked to make a fountain for the city, so he made one of a woman and called her the water nymph, to be like a spirit that was living in the river that brought water to the city.
A bittern is a type of bird that lived around the river.


(from: wikipedia - william rush and his model)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Amitabha Triad of Jōdo-ji - Kaikei

Friday, November 22, 2019

Russian - Do you speak Russian?


Remember that to say please or you're welcome in Russian, you say пожалуйста (pozhaluysta).

To ask if someone speaks Russian, you say:
Ты говоришь по-русски? (Ty govorish' po russki)
which sounds like tee goh-voh-dree-sh poh roo-skee - 文A
This is if you know the person pretty well.

If it is a grownup or teacher that you don't really know, you would say:
Вы говорите по русски (Vy govorishtay po russki)
which sounds like vee goh-voh-dree-tay poh roo-skee - 文A

To say yes you would say да (da) which sounds like dah - 文A

or to say no you would say нет (net) which sounds like nee-yet - 文A


russian language
(from: wikipedia - russian academy of sciences)

Norwegian: Kan du norsk?

Greek: Μιλατε ελληνικα? (Milate ellinika?)

ASL: Do you speak ASL?

Italian: Parli italiano?

German: Sprechen Sie Deutsch?

Spanish: ¿Hablas español?

French: parlez-vous français?

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Valve Port


We just learned about the valve Bonnet.

Another part of a valve is the Valve Port.

This is the part of the valve that lets water or gas in or out.
They can have as little as just two ports, but many valves have more.
Some valves even have up to 20 ports!

Simple two port valves are just open or closed.
Other valves with a lot of ports might have a few open and others closed depending on how it is set up.


(from: wikipedia - valve)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: HMS Erebus Rockets

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Lappet


We just learned about the Nerve Net that is like a jellyfish's brain.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Lappet.

The circle shaped bell of a jellyfish is sometimes split up into parts by a small indent on the outside of the bell.
This little part where the bell dips toward the middle helps the jellyfish bell be able to flex and pull in and out so the jellyfish can swim.

Each of the parts of the outside of the bell between the indents is called a lappet.


(from: wikipedia - aurelia aurita)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod - Tentacle Hooks

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Zonule of Zinn


We just learned about the Uvea.

Another part of the eye is the Zonule of Zinn.

This are the tiny little things like strings that go from the ciliary body to the lens.
Remember the lens is like the magnifying glass that changes shape so you can see far or close,
and the ciliary body is where the muscles are that help push and pull the lens to change it's shape.

It might sound like someone just wanted to come up with a funny name for a part of the body, but the word "zonule" means like tiny zone or tiny area, and the person who discovered this part of the body was named Johann Gottfried Zinn, so he named the area the Zonules of Zinn.

Sometimes it is also called Zinn's membrane, or the ciliary zonule, but Zonule of Zinn sounds the most fun.


(from: wikipedia - zonule of zinn)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Tooth - Bell Stage

Monday, November 18, 2019

Antarctica


We just learned about the Half Tower, and a whole lot of other types of castle Fortifications.

Let's learn about something else. The continent of Antarctica!

Even though we think of it as just a big chunk of frozen ice at the bottom of the earth, people have studied it and given names to all the parts of it from the east to the west.

There are even seas inside Antarctica, and hundreds of islands!

Some people even live down in Antarctica to study the ice and the climate.
There are some crazy animals down there too living on the land or even deep down in the cold sea.

We are trying to study it and learn more about it every year!


(from: wikipedia - geography of antarctica)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Westminster

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Hagia Sophia


We just learned about the Pentarchy of people ruling the church.

Another part of early Christianity is the Hagia Sophia.

This is a very big church that was built in the city of Constantinople in the year 532.
For almost a thousand years it was the biggest church in the world.

It is now a museum in the city that is now called Istanbul.


(from: wikipedia - hagia sophia)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Apostolic Age

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Chacmool


We just learned about the art pattern of Xicalcoliuhqui.

Another ancient Mesoamerican work of art is the Chacmool.

These are sculptures of warriors on their backs, propped up on their elbows with their knees bent and their head turned.
They have a bowl on their stomach, and many people believe these were used to offer sacrifices to mythological gods for fallen warriors.



(from: wikipedia - chacmool)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Six Patriarchs of Hossō - Kōkei

Friday, November 15, 2019

Russian - Please, You're Welcome


Remember that to say thank you in Russian, you say Спасибо (Spasibo).

To say please in Russian is пожалуйста (pozhaluysta) - Sounds like pah-zha-lih-stah. - 文A
The "zha" sound is like the sound the "s" makes in the word "vision".

And to say you're welcome, you say the exact same word! пожалуйста (pozhaluysta) - Sounds like pah-zha-lih-stah. - 文A


russian language
(from: wikipedia - russian academy of sciences)

Norwegian: Vær så snill, Værsågod

Greek: Παρακαλώ (Parakaló)

ASL: Please, You're Welcome

German: bitte, bitte schön

Spanish: Por favor, de nada

French: s'il vous plait, de rien

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Bonnet


We just learned about the Valve Body.

Another part of a valve is the Bonnet.

This is on top of the valve body, covering up the inside of it.
The bonnet can be taken off the top to open up the valve and fix it.


(from: wikipedia - valve)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Congreve Rockets

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Nerve Net


We just learned about the Jellyfish Stomach.

Another part of a jellyfish's body is the Nerve Net.

In humans, our nervous system is our brain which is in charge of the rest of our body, and then our spinal cord and nerves that sends messages back and forth to the brain.

In most jellyfish, they have a nerve net which is kind of like the nerves we have all over, but without the spinal cord or a brain.

The nerves are all hooked together, and if a jellyfish senses something near by the nerve net can send messages all over it's body for the whole jellyfish to swim or try to pull in it's oral arms.
But it doesn't really have any thinking to it, it is just a very quick and simple reaction to a feeling.

It's kind of like if you touch something really hot, your hand very quickly pulls away without really thinking about it.
But if you were like a jellyfish, then your hand would touch something hot but your whole body would pull away, arms, legs and all!


(from: wikipedia - nerve net)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod - Arms and Tentacles

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Uvea


We just learned about the Choroid.

Another part of the human eye is the Uvea, also called the vascular tunic.

This is the name for the group of three parts of the eye that we've already learned about: Iris, Ciliary Body, and Choroid.


(from: wikipedia - uvea)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Tooth - Cap Stage

Monday, November 11, 2019

Half Tower


We just learned about the Caltrop spikes in the ground.

Another type of fortification is a Half Tower.

This is a tower in a castle that is open in the back or on the sides.
It is usually open to the inside of the castle so that people can get in and out easily, but still be protected from the outside.


(from: wikipedia - half tower)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Mortizburg Castle

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Pentarchy


We just learned about the Baptism of Clovis I.

Another part of early Christianity is the Pentarchy.

We've already learned that the head of the big churches were called Bishops, and that the Bishop of the church in Rome is called the Pope.

In the old days there were 5 churches in the Roman empire that were seen as the most important:

Rome - in what is now Italy
Constantinople - in what is now Turkey, and renamed Istanbul
Alexandria - in what is now Egypt
Antioch - in what is now Turkey, renamed Antakya
Jerusalem - in what is now Israel

There were other churches, but the leaders of these churches were put in charge, so if there as disagreement between all of the many churches around these leaders would decide what to do.

It was the start of the churches really getting organized and turning into a really big group instead of a bunch of small churches spread around that argued with each other.


(from: wikipedia - pentarchy)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Christianity after Jesus

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Xicalcoliuhqui


We just learned about the San Martin Pajapan Monument I.

Another type of Mesoamerican art is Xicalcoliuhqui.

This word means "twisted gourd" and is something that is seen on a lot of art from the Mesoamerican areas from long ago.

It is made up of some small steps that are then connected to a spiral.
Ancient sculptures and paintings used this on buildings, clothing or other works of art.


(from: wikipedia - xicalcoliuhqui)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Byodoin Amitaabha - Jōchō

Friday, November 8, 2019

Russian - Very good thanks, and you?

We just learned to say How are you? in Russian, Как дела? (kak dela)

and Very good thanks is Спасибо Хорошо (Spasibo khorosho)

To be polite you should also ask how the other person is doing.

In Russian sometimes you use different words if the person is a friend or a stranger, or a teacher or someone you are showing respect to.

If you are talking to a friend, you say:

And you? - А вы? (A vy?) - sounds like ah-vee - 文A

If you are talking to a stranger or a teacher you might say:

And you? - А ты? (A ty?) - sounds like ah-tee - 文A

russian language
(from: wikipedia - russian academy of sciences)

Norwegian: Veldig bra takk. Og du?

Greek: Πολύ καλά, ευχαριστώ. εσύ? (Polý kalá, efcharistó)

ASL: Very Good Thanks, and You?

Italian: Molto bene, grazie.

German: Sehr gut, danke. Und Sie?

Spanish: Muy bien gracias. ¿Y tú?

French: Très bien, merci. Et vous?

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Valve Body


We just learned about the Valve.

There are a lot of parts to a valve that make it work.
Most of the parts of the valve inside of it that you can't see are all together called the Valve Body.

Inside the valve body are the parts of the valve that open and close to let gas or liquid through.


(from: wikipedia - valve)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Mysorean Rockets

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Jellyfish Stomach


We just learned about the Nematocysts.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Jellyfish Stomach.

We learned before about the oral arms that bring the food to the stomach, and the manubrium which is both the way a jellyfish eats and also gets rid of waste.

When a jellyfish gets food into it's stomach, it uses things called enzymes to slowly digest the food until it is all liquid, and then it sends it off to all the parts of the jellyfish's body.

After the good parts of the food are all used up by the jellyfish's body, the liquid is sent back to the jellyfish's stomach, and then pushed out of the manubrium so it is empty again.


(from: wikipedia - jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cuttlebone

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Choroid


We just learned about the Ciliary Body.

Another part of the human eye is the Choroid.

Remember we learned that the sclera is the white part of the outside of the eye, and the retina is the inside of the eye in the back.

The choroid is a layer in between the sclera and retina.
It helps give blood to the retina, helps hold things together, and also it is dark and helps make sure the retina picks up the light coming in from the pupil.


(from: wikipedia - choroid)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Tooth Buds

Monday, November 4, 2019

Caltrop


We just learned about the Czech Hedgehog.

Another type of castle fortification is a Caltrop.

These are kind of like the Czech Hedgehogs as they are spikey things on the ground, but they are a lot smaller.
Caltrops would be put out over where enemies would be marching, so that they had to walk slowly and carefully to try and not step on one of the spikes.


(from: wikipedia - caltrop)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Catherine Palace

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Baptism of Clovis I


We just learned about the Leo and Attila.

Another part of early Christianity is the Baptism of Clovis I.

In the land we now call France, there were a lot of people who did not believe in God.
One of them was a very powerful king named Clovis I.

His wife was named Clotilde, and she grew up as a Christian.
When she married Clovis I she begged him to become a Christian, and after a while he finally agreed.

This helped spread Christianity through France, and because the King was a Christian it was safe for other people to talk about God.

There is still a statue of Clovis I being baptized in the city of Reims.


(from: wikipedia - clovis i)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cæsar - bishop of Dyrrachium

Saturday, November 2, 2019

San Martín Pajapan Monument 1


We just learned about the Toltec Atlantean figures from Tula.

Another ancient sculpture from Mesoamerica is the San Martín Pajapan Monument 1.

This is another sculpture made by the Olmec people from ancient Mexico, carved some time before 1000 BC.

It is made out of basalt rock, and was found on the top of the San Martin Pajapan volcano in the Mexican state of Veracruz.

The statue is of a young ruler who is bent over and lifting a large bar from the ground.
People think this bar was meant to be for the world tree, and the sculpture was meant to show the earthly world connecting with the spiritual worlds above and below.


(from: wikipedia - )


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Tōdai-ji Nio Guardian Agyō - Unkei

Friday, November 1, 2019

Russian - How are you?


We just learned some greetings in Russian, like Привет (privet), Здравствуй (Zdravstvuy) and Доброе утро (Dobroye utro), Добрый день (Dobryy den), Добрый вечер (Dobryy vecher), Доброй ночи (Dobroy nochi).

If you want to say How are you? in Russian, you would say:

Как дела? (kak dela) - sounds like kah-k dee-lah - 文A

To respond and say Very good thanks, you would say:

Спасибо Хорошо (Spasibo khorosho) - sounds like spah-ee-see-bah kha-dah-shoh. - 文A

The "X" in Russian sounds kind of like the sound a cat makes when hissing.

russian language
(from: wikipedia - russian academy of sciences)

Norwegian: Hvordan har du det? Veldig bra takk. Greek: Γειά σου (Geiá sou), Χαίρετε (Chairete), Αντίο (Antío), Καλημέρα (Kaliméra), Καλησπέρα (Kalispéra), Καληνυχτα - (Kalinychta)

ASL: How are you?

Italian: Come va? Molto bene, grazie.

German: Wie geht es Ihnen? Sehr gut, danke.

Spanish: ¿Cómo estás? Muy bien, gracias.

French: Comment allez-vous? Très bien, merci.