Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Stomach - Body


Let's keep learning about the parts of the stomach in the digestive system.

We've learned about the cardia and the fundus.

The largest part of the stomach is called the body.
That's where the food stays until it is all broken down to smaller soft mushy pieces.
That is called digestion.
stomach
(from: wikipedia - stomach)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Lacrimal Bones

Monday, June 9, 2014

Algeria


We just learned about the country of Kenya
Algeria is a country in Africa on the North of the continent just east of Morocco, and on the Mediterranean sea.
algeria map
(from: wikipedia - algeria)

The flag of Algeria is green and white, with a red crescent and star in the middle.
The green stands for the beauty of nature, the white for peace, the red for the blood of those who died fighting for the country, and the star and crescent represent the muslim people of Algeria.
flag of algeria
(from: wikipedia - flag of algeria)

To eat in Algeria you might have chakhchoukha, which is small pieces of flatbread mixed with a meat and vegetable stew.
chakhchoukha
(from: wikipedia - chakhchoukha)


Claude Cohen Tannoudji is a famous scientist who was born in Algeria.
He won a nobel prize for his scientific work with lasers and atoms.

claude cohen tannoudji
(from: wikipedia - claude cohen tannoudji)

There is an ancient Roman theater in Algeria, in a town called Djémila.

djemila roman theater
(from: wikipedia - djemila)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: England

Saturday, June 7, 2014

Solar Core - Energy


Let's keep learning about the sun's solar core. We've learned about it's size, heat and density.

The heat that is made at the solar core is because of the energy the core makes using something called fusion.

Remember we learned that atoms are very very tiny things, smaller than the tiniest grain of sand. So small that we can't see them without special super microscopes.
And hydrogen is a type of gas, kind of like the oxygen we breathe.

When hydrogen atoms are smashed together really really hard and fast, fusion can happen, and the hydrogen turns into helium.
When that happens it releases a HUGE amount of energy.

Compared to an explosion from a stick of dynamite, it is over a quintillion times bigger!
A quintillion is a 1 with 18 zeroes after it: 1,000,000,000,000,000,000

That much energy from fusion is created every single second of every day,
and it's what creates the heat and light that keep the sun going.

Just think of it as a whole bunch of tiny little things making huge explosions every second
so that we can stay warm and have sunshine every day.
solar core energy
(from: wikipedia - fusion power)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Proxima Centauri

Friday, June 6, 2014

Spanish - Thursday, Friday


Let's keep learning the days of the week in Spanish!

We already learned that Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday is Lunes, Martes, Miercoles

Thursday - Jueves - sounds like hoo-ay-bay-ss /?/

Friday - Viernes - sounds like bee-ay-d-nay-ss /?/


association of spanish language academies
(from: wikipedia - Association of Spanish Language Academies)

Do you remember how to say it in French?
French - Thursday, Friday - Jeudi Vendredi

Thursday, June 5, 2014

Iron


We just learned about the shiny black rock Graphite

Another cool type of element is Iron.

Iron is a very common mineral found throughout the earth, and it is used in many types of metal things.

Because it is such a useful metal, it is mined throughout the world.
iron
(from: wikipedia - iron)

Iron is one of the main chemical elements, the building blocks that make up our world.
It is on the Periodic Table under the name "Fe" which comes from the latin word for iron: "ferrum".

When combined with other types of minerals like carbon, it can become stronger.
When two minerals are combined like that it is called an alloy.
With the right type of carbon and iron, you can make the super strong metal steel.

steel wire
(from: wikipedia - steel)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Chemical Elements

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Peacock Spider


We just learned about the Wolf Spider that carries around its babies.

Spiders come in all shapes and sizes. Some are really colorful!

One type of fancy looking spider is nicknamed the peacock spider.
It's real science name is maratus volans.

When the male spider is looking for a wife, he will flap around the colorful parts of his body, wave his arms, and do a dance to get her attention.

peacock spider
(from: wikipedia - maratus volans)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Northern Pike