Saturday, April 25, 2020

Patience and Fortitude - Edward Clark Potter


We just learned about the On the Prowl - Edward Kemeys.

Another famous American sculpture is Patience and Fortitude made by Edward Clark Potter in 1910.

Potter was born in Connecticut in 1857, and grew up in Massachusetts.
He started off going to college to be a minister, but then later studied to be an artist.

He worked with famous artist Daniel Chester French where he learned about animal studies, and when he was 53 he made the sculpture of two lions out of pink Tennessee marble that are outside the front of the New York public library.

He named the lions Leo Astor and Leo Lenox for the private libraries that are inside the library.
During the Great Depression, the mayor of New York said that the people there were showing great Patience and Fortitude, so they renamed the lions to Patience and Fortitude to honor the people that lived through the Depression.



(from: wikipedia - edward clark potter)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Taj Mahal

Friday, April 24, 2020

Russian - His face is rough


We just learned in Russian hands are soft is Ее руки мягкие (Yeye ruki myagkiye).

To say his face is rough you would say Его лицо грубо (Yego litso grubo).
His - Его (Yego) - sounds like yay-go 文A

face - лицо (litso) - sounds like lee-t-soh 文A

rough - грубо (grubo) - sounds like g-roo-boh 文A


So all together Его лицо грубо (Yego litso grubo) sounds like yay-go lee-t-soh g-roo-boh.


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

Norwegian: Ansiktet hans er grovt

Greek: Το πρόσωπό του είναι τραχύ (To prósopó tou eínai trachý)

ASL: His face is rough

Italian: il suo volto è ruvida

German: Sein Gesicht ist rau.

Spanish: Su cara es áspera

French: Son visage est rude

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Vacuum Pump


We just learned about the Steam Turbine.

Let's learn a little about how steam engines work.
First we need to learn a few other things that people discovered before they could make a steam vacuum.

One thing people discovered was the Vacuum Pump.

A long time ago people didn't understand a long time ago was how a vacuum worked.
Not like the vacuum cleaner that sucks dirt up from the floor, but a vacuum like a ball or a tube that is so empty that it has suction holding itself closed.

You can think about this like a plastic pop bottle that you suck air out of.
As soon as you let go, it will suck the air in and fill itself up again.

Back in 1654 people didn't understand this, so a man named Otto von Guericke came up with an experiment to show them.
He took two half circles made of metal, called the magdeburg hemispheres, and put them together like a closed ball.
Then he used a pump to suck out all of the air from inside, creating what is called a vacuum.

A vacuum is a space that has no air, or very little air.
Because he used a pump to do this, it was called a vacuum pump.

After that he challenged people to try and pull the half circles apart, but not even teams of horses could do it.
This understanding of how a vacuum works was one of the things that helped people invent steam engines.


(from: wikipedia - magdeburg hemispheres)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Forensic Firearm Examination

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Pampas Cat


We just learned about the Ocelot.

Another type of wild cat is the Pampas Cat also called the pantanal cat, colocolo, and Leopardus Colocolo.

This cat is only a little bigger than a house cat, and has a big bushy tail.

It is only a little over 2 feet long.
The Pampas Cats has a lot of different looks, and can be red, grey or brown, with stripes or spots on it.
They only live in parts of South America,

(from: wikipedia - pampas cat)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Irukandji Jellyfish

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Epicanthic Fold


We just learned about the Eyelids.

Another part of the eye is the Epicanthic Fold.

The skin above the eyelid for some people is folded over and lays over the top of the eyelid.

This happens more for some people depending on where they come from.
Asian people from countries like China or Japan usually have a bigger epicanthic fold than people form North America or Europe.


(from: wikipedia - epicanthic fold)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Hard Palate

Monday, April 20, 2020

ANSMET Station


We just learned about the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica Station.

Another Antarctic station is ANSMET Station, which stands for Antarctic Search for Meteorites.

This is a station in the Transantarctic Mountains where 4 to 10 people live and collect meteorites.
They go out on snowmobiles and search in the snow for meteorites that are buried in the mountains.

ANSMET was built in the year 1976, and since then they have collected over 20,000 meteorites!
A few meteorites were from the moon, and a few were even from Mars!



(from: wikipedia - ansmet)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Parapet

Sunday, April 19, 2020

The Crusades


We just learned about the East-West Schism.

Another part of early Christianity The Crusades.

During the time of the church's growth into Europe, the Christians sometimes would have battles against other groups of people that were not Christians.

Sometimes these people were in places like Jerusalem, and other times they were in countries like Germany.

The crusades went on for hundreds of years, and were like wars that people fought in the name of Christianity.
They fought them either to try and take back a land, or to try and force someone to be Christianity.


(from: wikipedia - crusades)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Edict of Milan