Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Kiwi


We just learned about the Hedgehog.

The kiwi bird is a small bird that lives in a country called New Zealand.
It can't fly, just like the ostrich or penguin.

A kiwi bird is about the size of a chicken, but the kiwi egg
is about six times the size of a chicken's egg!

kiwi
(from: wikipedia - kiwi)


One different thing about the kiwi is that it has nostrils at the very end of its beak.
It can use it's beak to smell the dirt and find small bugs or seeds to eat below the dirt.

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Forearm flexors


We just learned about the Calf Muscle

In your forearm there are a few different muscles.

One of them is used to help flex the elbow together,
it is called the brachioradialis.

brachiradialis
(from: wikipedia - brachioradialis)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Thoracic Cage

Monday, September 16, 2013

Belgium


Let's keep learning about the countries in Europe!

Last time we learned about Austria.

Next up is Belgium.

Belgium is a country just North of France, and West of Germany.
belgium
(from: wikipedia - belgium)

For breakfast in Belgium, you might have a Belgian waffle!
belgian waffle
(from: wikipedia - belgium)

You can visit a giant 335 ft tall building of an iron atom, called the Atomium
atomium
(from: wikipedia - atomium)

The saxophone was invented by Belgian musician Adolphe Sax.
saxophone
(from: wikipedia - saxophone)

Hundreds of years ago, people would visit the town of Spa in Belgium, to relax in cool water springs.
spa
(from: wikipedia - spa)


Sunday, September 15, 2013

Mark


Let's keep learning about the four Gospels in the New Testament.

Last time we learned about Matthew, next up is Mark.

Mark was another follower of Jesus who also told of the miracles he performed.
22 miracles are listed in the Gospel of Mark, and 19 of them are the same ones listed in Matthew.

st. mark
(from: wikipedia - mark the evangelist)

Saturday, September 14, 2013

Black Dwarf


We've now learned that our Sun is a Yellow Dwarf,
after it burns for 10 billion years it will turn into a Red Giant,
and after it burns for another 1 billion years it will turn into a White Dwarf.

That white dwarf will burn slowly for a very very long time,
over 10 Undecillion years (One undecillion is a 1 with 36 zeroes after it!),
then it will cool down and turn into a Black Dwarf.

That's such a long time, that no actual black dwarfs exist!
Scientists are just pretty sure that's what is going to happen some day.

outer space
(from: wikipedia - outer space)


Friday, September 13, 2013

French - counting to eighty nine



We just learned how to count to 79 in French, let's keep going!

Just like seventy was really sixty-ten, eighty is also a little different.
The word for eighty is quatre-vingts which means four-twenties because 20 times 4 is 80!

80 quatre-vingts - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n /?/
81 quatre-vingts-un - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-nt un /?/
82 quatre vingt deux - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n doo /?/
83 quatre vingt trois - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n twa /?/
84 quatre vingt quatre - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n cat-uh /?/
85 quatre vingt cinq - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n sahn /?/
86 quatre vingt six - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n see /?/
87 quatre vingt sept - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n set /?/
88 quatre vingt huit - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n oo-ee /?/
89 quatre vingt neuf - sounds like cat-uh-ah vah-n nef /?/

Organisation internationale de la Francophonie
(from: wikipedia - OIF)

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Electroluminescence


Electroluminescence is a pretty fancy sounding word,
but all it really means is a way that some things give off light
when you run electricity through them.

Electro - for electricity
luminescence - a fancy way to say light

Some of the best chemicals for making this kind of light are doped semiconductors,
which we learned before are just two kinds of chemicals mixed together.

When the electricity flows through them, the photons (which are tiny particles of light)
go shooting off of the chemicals and make it glow.
electroluminescence
(from: wikipedia - electroluminescence)