Humboldt Squid

We just learned about the Southern Sand Octopus.

Another type of cephalopod is the Humboldt Squid, also known as the jumbo squid, jumbo flying squid, pota, or diablo rojo (red devil).

These squid can gro from 5 feet to 8 feet long, they live in the Pacific Ocean, and usually live around 1,000 feet under the water.
Just like some other cephalopods, they can change colors from white to red, which is where they get the nickname "red devil".
Sometimes these squids will talk to other nearby squids by flashing different colors!

This squid is a hunter, and when it is hunting other small fish it uses all of its 8 arms and 2 tentacles to reach out and grab the smaller fish or other animals it is hunting, then pull them into its mouth where it has a sharp beak used to cut up and eat the animals.
They are super fast hunters and can swim up to 15 miles per hour!

Some people have been attacked by this type of squid, but scientists think that only happens when the squid are feeding on other prey and are hunting.
When these squid get angry they have even attacked and broken deep sea cameras sent down to look at nature.




(from: wikipedia - humboldt squid)


Swimming With a Humboldt Squid | Deadly 60 | BBC Earth - BBC Earth

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Banded Bullfrog

Dental Notation - Palmer

We just learned about Dental Notation - ISO.

Another type of Dental Notation is Palmer Notation.

This uses the same idea where the number starts at the front and goes backward, but it also uses a little L shaped or corner shaped symbol (┘└ ┐┌) to show which part of the mouth the tooth is in.

So if a dentist wants to talk about the 4th tooth in the upper right part of the mouth, they would use 4┘



(from: wikipedia - palmer notation)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Ligament

Himeji Castle

We just learned about the Citadel of Aleppo.

Another famous castle is Himeji Castle in Japan, built around 1300 AD.

It is the largest castle in Japan, and because of its white color is sometimes called the "White Egret Castle" or "White Heron Castle" because it looks like a bird flying away.

The castle is over 5,000 feet long, and the area around the castle takes up over 500 acres.
Inside the castle area, the main building has 6 floors and a basement. It looks like 5 floors because from outside the top two look like the same floor.
The floors go from big at the bottom, over 5,000 square feet to small at the top, only about 1,000 square feet.

On the first floor there are over 300 tatami mats, which are special made floor spaces, and lots of weapons.
Each wall has weapon racks for holding spears and guns, and once had about 280 guns and 90 spears.

There are arrow slits through all the floors to shoot arrows at attackers, and the upper floors had places that people could come out and throw things at attackers below.
Outside there are three moats, and a big maze of pathways that go around and around the castle, up hills and in small spaces.
This was to make it so even if an army did attack, the castle would see them coming a long way out and be able to stop them with the moats.







(from: wikipedia - himeji castle)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Yukon

Asyncritus - bishop of Hyrcania

We just learned about the Rufus - bishop of Thebes, one of the seventy disciples

Another of the seventy was Asyncritus - bishop of Hyrcania.

Just like Rufus, Asyncritus was one of the people that Paul talked about when he wrote a letter to the people of Rome.

Asyncritus went on to the land of Hyrcania, which later became part of the country of Iran.


(from: wikipedia - asyncritus of hyrcania)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Paul of Thebes

Phoenix crown of Empress Xiaoduanxian

We just learned about the Shi Qiang Pan.

Another ancient Chinese work of art is the Phoenix crown of Empress Xiaoduanxian, made around 1500 AD in China.

In ancient times in China, queens brides and noble women would wear a special crown called Fengguan which means "phoenix crown".
The name comes from the phoenix decoration on the crown, made from feathers of the kingfisher bird.
There are also golden dragons, bearded pheasants, pearls and other gems.
Each crown was different and some would have more dragons or jewels based on how important the person was.

One of the fanciest phoenix crowns was from the Ming Empress Xiaoduanxian with 6 dragons, 3 phoenixes, 5,449 pearls, 71 rubies and 57 sapphires.
This kind of crown would weigh about five pounds.



(from: wikipedia - wang xijie)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: St. Cecilia - Stefano Maderno

Greek - Couting to Sixty Nine

We counted to 59 in Greek, let's keep going!

60 εξήντα (exínta) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah
61 εξήντα ένα (exínta éna) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah AY-nah
62 εξήντα δύο (exínta dýo) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah DEE-y-oh
63 εξήντα τρεις (exínta treis) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah t-day-ss
64 εξήντα τέσσερις (exínta tésseris) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah TAY-say-dee-ss
65 εξήντα πέντε (exínta pénte) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah PAY-n-tay
66 εξήντα έξι (exínta éxi) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah AY-k-see
67 εξήντα επτά (exínta eptá) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah ay-p-TAH
68 εξήντα οκτώ (exínta októ) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah oh-k-TOH
69 εξήντα εννέα (exínta ennéa) - sounds like ay-ks-EEN-tah eh-NEE-y-ah


(from: wikipedia - center for the greek language)

ASL: fifty, fifty one, fifty two, fifty three, fifty four, fifty five, fifty six, fifty seven, fifty eight, fifty nine

Italian: sessanta, sessantuno, sessantadue, sessantatre, sessantaquattro, sessantacinque, sessantasei, sessantasette, sessantotto, sessantanove

German: sechzig, einundsechzig, zweiundsechzig, dreiundsechzig, vierundsechzig, fünfundsechzig, sechsundsechzig, siebenundsechzig, achtundsechzig, neunundsechzig

Spanish: sesenta, sesenta y uno, sesenta y dos, sesenta y tres, sesenta y cuatro, sesenta y cinco, sesenta y seis, sesenta y siete, sesenta y ocho, sesenta y nueve

French: soixante, soixante et un, soixante-deux, soixante-trois, soixante-quatre, soixante-cinq, soixante-six, soixante-sept, soixante-huit, soixante-neuf

Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)

We just learned about the Airspeed Indicator.

Some of the tools we've talked about are things called Inertial Measurement Units or just IMU for short.

Inertia is the change in the rockets speed or direction, so the tools that we talked about like the gyroscope, magnetometer and accelerometer are all used to tell how the rocket is moving, so they are all IMUs.

IMUs all help measure things called Roll, Pitch and Yaw.

Roll is like when an airplane is still going forward in the air, but does a spin so it is flipped upside down, but still going forward.
Pitch is like when the airplane moves its nose to go down toward the ground or up toward the sky.
Yaw is like when the airplane isn't flying along and then turns left or right.

Different types of rockets use different IMUs depending on what kind of sensors they need, but they all are used to measure roll, pitch and yaw.



(from: wikipedia - inertial measurement unit)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Tectonic plates.

Southern Sand Octopus

We just learned about the Joubin's Squid.

Another cephalopod is the Southern Sand Octopus, also called octopus kaurna.

This octopus lives around Australia, and grows up to about 20 inches long, with very thin arms.

This octopus can not change colors like a lot of others can, so it stays hidden by burying itself in the sand.
It goes down by the bottom of the sea, and spits out a big jet of water down into the sand, then use its arms to quickly dive down into the hole it made.


(from: wikipedia - octopus kaurna)


Octopus makes its own quicksand then vanishes inside - New Scientist

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Coqui

Dental Notation - ISO

We just learned about Dental Notation - Universal Numbering.

Another way of numbering teeth is the ISO System or the International Standards Organization System, also called the FDI system.

This way of numbering teeth puts teeth in four different sections by number:
1 - top right
2 - top left
3 - bottom left
4 - bottom right

The teeth in those areas are numbered starting from the front with 1, and the numbers go up as you get toward the back.
So the top right front tooth is 1-1, and the top left front tooth is 2-1.
The top right back tooth is 1-7, and the top left back tooth is 2-7.
The bottom teeth go from 3-1 to 3-7, and 4-1 to 4-7.

Some dentists like this way of numbering tooth because they can easily split the mouth up into 4 parts.




(from: wikipedia - dental notation)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Collagen

Citadel of Aleppo

We just learned about the Prague Castle.

Another ancient castle is the Citadel of Aleppo in Syria.

It is one of the oldest and largest castles in the world, built over 2000 years ago, around 300 AD.
The hill where this castle was is so old that people say Abraham from the Bible had his sheep up on this hill.
The conqueror Alexander the Great took over this castle, as did the Roman Empire, the Mongols from China, the Ottoman Empire and the French and Syrian people.

The Citadel is about 1,500 feet long and 1,000 feet wide, and over 150 feet tall.
It used to be covered with shiny blocks of limestone, and some of those blocks are still there.
There is a moat around it that is 72 feet deep and 98 feet wide, made over 800 years ago.

This castle was very hard to take over, because people coming in would have to take over six turns on a ramp that had machicolations above them where people could drop rocks or hot oil on them from above.
There are also secret passageways all over the citadel, and even underground passages going over 400 feet below the building.



(from: wikipedia - citadel of aleppo)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Nunavut

Rufus - bishop of Thebes

We just learned about Agabus the prophet, one of the seventy disciples

Another of the seventy was Rufus - bishop of Thebes.

Rufus was one of the people that Paul talked about when he wrote a letter to the people of Rome.
After Paul and Luke went to the city of Thebes in Greece, Rufus stayed there as a bishop to help lead the church.


(from: wikipedia - rufus of thebes)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Monks

Shi Qiang Pan

We just learned about the Qin Bronze Chariot.

Another ancient Chinese sculpture is the Shi Qiang Pan.

This is an ancient bronze bowl made around 900 BC.
There is writing inside the bowl, and some people believe this is the first time anyone tried to write about history in China.

The writing tells about all of the wonderful things the old and new rulers of China, did.
It also tells about the person named Qiang who made the bronze bowl.



(from: wikipedia - shi qiang pan)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Fontana Della Barcaccia - Pietro Bernini

Greek - Counting to Fifty Nine

We counted to 49 in Greek, let's keep going!

50 πενήντα (penínta) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah
51 πενήντα ένα (penínta éna) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah AY-nah
52 πενήντα δύο (penínta dýo) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah DEE-y-oh
53 πενήντα τρεις (penínta treis) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah t-day-ss
54 πενήντα τέσσερις (penínta tésseris) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah TAY-say-dee-ss
55 πενήντα πέντε (penínta pénte) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah PAY-n-tay
56 πενήντα έξι (penínta éxi) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah AY-k-see
57 πενήντα επτά (penínta eptá) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah ay-p-TAH
58 πενήντα οκτώ (penínta októ) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah oh-k-TOH
59 πενήντα εννέα (penínta ennéa) - sounds like pay-NEEN-tah eh-NEE-y-ah


(from: wikipedia - center for the greek language)

ASL: Fifty, fifty one, fifty two, fifty three, fifty four, fifty five, fifty six, fifty seven, fifty eight, fifty nine

Italian: cinquanta, cinquantuno, cinquanta due, cinquanta tre, cinquantaquattro, cinquantacinque, cinquantasei, cinquantasette, cinquantotto, cinquantanove

German: fünfzig, einundfünfzig, zweiundfünfzig, dreiundfünfzig, vierundfünfzig, fünfundfünfzig, sechsundfünfzig, siebenundfünfzig, achtundfünfzig, neunundfünfzig

Spanish: cincuenta, cincuenta y uno, cincuenta y dos, cincuenta y tres, cincuenta y cuatro, cincuenta y cinco, cincuenta y seis, cincuenta y siete, cincuenta y ocho, cincuenta y nueve

French: cinquante, cinquante et un, cinquante-deux, cinquante-trois, cinquante-quatre, cinquante-cinq, cinquante-six, cinquante-sept, cinquante-huit, cinquante-deux

Airspeed Indicator

We just learned about the Spacecraft Magnetometer.

Another rocket guidance tool is an Airspeed Indicator.

When the rocket is blasting through the air, it can use this tool to figure out how fast it is going.
The Airspeed Indicator uses something called a pitot tube (pronounced PEE-toh) which is a tube that has some liquid in it.
As the rocket flies along the air flowing into the pitot tube puts pressure on the liquid, and the airspeed indicator uses that pressure to measure how fast the rocket is going.

If it is going very fast, there will be a lot of pressure.



(from: wikipedia - airspeed indicator)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Hypocenter

Joubin's Squid

We just learned about the Stumpy Spined Cuttlefish.

Another type of cephalopod is the Joubin's squid, also called Joubiniteuthis portieri.

This squid lives in very deep parts of the ocean, and has some very long arms that it just leaves hanging out floating in the water to catch small animals that accidentally swim into it.

It is a very small squid and is only a little over 3 inches long.


(from: wikipedia - joubiniteuthis portieri)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Golden Mantella

Dental Notation - Universal Numbering System

We just learned about Hypodontia.

When a dentist wants to look at your teeth, they give all your teeth a number so they can talk about which ones are healthy or have cavities.

This is called Dental Notation.

There are a few different ways that people number the teeth.
One way is called the Universal Numbering System

Sometimes a dentist will start with the upper right back adult or permanent tooth as #1 and then go 2,3,4,5,6,7,8 to the top middle, and 9,10,11,12,1314,15,16 to the top back left tooth.
Then next is the lower back left tooth at #17, and then toward the front 18,19,20,21,22,23,24.
From the front left around to the front right, 25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32.

Those are for the adult teeth.
If it's a primary or baby tooth, they use ABCDE from top right to top middle, and FGHIJ from top middle to top left.
KLMNO from bottom left to bottom middle, and PQRST from bottom middle to bottom right.


(from: wikipedia - universal numbering system)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Tendon