Lacrimal Lake

We just learned about the Canthus.

Another part of the eyes is the Lacrimal Lake.

This is in the inside corner of the eyes, where the tears pool up before they spill over onto the cheeks.


(from: wikipedia - lacrimal lake)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Incisive Papilla

Brown Station

We just learned about the Vernadsky Research Base.

Another research station in Antarctica is Brown Sation.

This station is owned by Argentina, and was built in 1951.
In 1984 when winter time was coming, one of the scientists did not want to stay during the cold winter but he was told that he had to.
So because he was mad and didn't want to stay, he burned down the station!
Luckily everyone escaped the fire and survived, and they all had to go home.

The station was rebuilt later on, and has about 18 people staying there.
They have a great lookout point that is 276 feet above the station, where people go to take great pictures.
After taking pictures, they go sledding down the hill back to the station.

It is also a great place for gentoo penguins who love to come visit, and the scientists try to study what they are doing.





(from: wikipedia - brown station)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Battlements

Second Crusade

We just learned about the The Prince's Crusade.

Another part of early Christianity is the Second Crusade.

After the European countries' wars to take over lands in the name of Christianity, there were some wars where some non-Christian rulers of other countries took them back.

Because the European countries were victorious in the Prince's Crusade, they decided to have another war and try to take that land back.
During the hundreds of years in Europe and Asia, many countries battled each other for land and power.
The difference with the Crusades is that people were using Christianity or other religions as the reason to go have wars to take over other lands.

Some lands in places that are now Syria and Turkey took lands back, and so armies from Germany and France came to take the country back in the name of Christianity.

Tens of thousands of people were killed on both sides of the war, and the crusaders from Germany and France lost the battle.


(from: wikipedia - second crusade)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Saint Helena

John Dill - Herbert Haseltine

We just learned about the Meat for Wild Men by Charles Marion Russell.

Another famous American statue is John Dill by Herbert Haseltine, made in 1950 in Virginia.

Haseltine was born in Italy, then studied art in America, Germany and Paris.

He was very good at sculpting many animals, but he was best at making horse, or "equestrian" sculptures.

John Dill was a famous war hero from Britain, who was very important in helping the United States and Britain work together in World War II.


(from: wikipedia - herbert haseltine)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Borobudur

Russian - Thursday, Friday

We just learned that Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday in Russian is Понедельник (Ponedel'nik), Вторник (Vtornik), Среда (Sreda).

Let's keep learning the days of the week!

Thursday - Четверг (Chetverg) - sounds like cheh-t-v-yeh-rg 文A

Friday - пятница - (Pyatnitsa) sounds like P-yah-t-nih-t-sah 文A



(from: wikipedia - russian academy of sciences)

Norwegian: Torsdag, Fredag

Greek: Πέμπτη (Pémpti), Παρασκευή (Paraskeví)

ASL: Thursday, Friday

Italian: Giovedì, Venerdì

German: Donnerstag, Freitag

Spanish: Viernes, Jueves

French: Jeudi, Vendredi

Steam Pump

We just learned about the Steam Cylinder.

Another invention that led up to the steam locomotive was the Steam Pump.

A man named Thomas Savery came up with an invention that could help pump water up out of a flooded mine, or help pump water to be sprayed or brought to a town that needed it.

His invention called the Savery Engine had a furnace that would heat up water to make steam in one place.
This steam had high pressure and helped pump out.
Then a valve would be opened to let some hot steam out, and the tank would get splashed with water.
This would cool down the steam and make it get smaller, which created a vacuum that sucked back in.

It wasn't an engine with moving parts like a car engine, but the pushing out and sucking in helped people understand how steam could be used to make an engine.


(from: wikipedia - thomas savery)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Forensic Anthropology

Margay

We just learned about the Andean Mountain Cat.

Another type of small wild cat is the Margay.

The Margay lives in Central and South America, mostly in the forests.
They like to be alone, and they stay awake at night to hunt.

These cats look a lot like an ocelot, except they have bigger eyes and longer tails and legs.
They weigh about 9 pounds and are about 3 feet long.
Their fur is brown with spots and stripes on it, and a banded tail with a black tip.

The Margay is one of the best climbers out there, and some people even call them the tree ocelot since they can climb so well.
They can jump up to 12 feet from tree to tree, and are so good in trees that they can spend their whole life in the trees chasing monkeys and birds.
Most cats can't climb down a tree with their head facing down, but the margay has special ankles that let it grab the tree and climb up or down.





(from: wikipedia - margay)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Darth Vader Jellyfish