Spider Exoskeleton

We just learned about the Spider Silk Cribellum

Our bones are on the inside of our body, and surrounded by muscles and fat and skin.

Spiders have their bones on the outside of their body, just like a big shell.
That is called an exoskeleton. Exo means outer.

Our skeleton on the inside is called an endoskeleton. Endo means inner.

A spider's exoskeleton is very hard and protects their heart and lungs and brain from getting hurt.

(from: wikipedia - spider)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Antelope

Internal Carotid Artery

We just learned that the Common Carotid Artery brings oxygenated blood up to the neck area from the aortic arch.

The common carotid artery divides into two smaller tubes, one is called the internal carotid artery.

This artery goes up to give blood to your brain.


(from: wikipedia - internal carotid artery)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Eyelid Muscles

Indiana

We just learned about the US State of Illinois.

Indiana is a state in the midwest part of the US, with the north west part of the state bordering Lake Michigan.
It's state nickname is The Hoosier State. A Hoosier is just a funny nickname for someone from Indiana.
The state motto is The Crossroads of America because there are many big roads that go through Indiana, and in the past many railroads and river canals went through the state.
The name Indiana means land of the indians.

(from: wikipedia - indiana)

The flag has a blue background, with a gold torch for liberty and enlightenment, and 19 golden stars since it was the 19th state to join the union.
13 of the stars are in the outside circle for the original 13 colonies in the US.
5 of the stars are in the next circle for the next 5 states that joined the US.
1 star above the torch is for Indiana.

(from: wikipedia - flag of indiana)

The Indiana state seal has a sun rising over mountains, a bison running, a woodsman chopping a sycamore tree, and the state tree of the tulip in the border.

(from: wikipedia - seal of indiana)

Indiana has many sand dunes on Lake Michigan.

(from: wikipedia - indiana dunes state park)

There is a famous car race in the city of Indianapolis, called the Indianapolis 500.

(from: wikipedia - indianapolis 500)

There is a town in Indiana named Santa Claus.
The whole town is Christmas themed, and has lakes named Christmas Lake, Lake Holly and Lake Noel.

The town has Santa's Candy Castle, Santa Claus Museum, Holiday World & Splashin' Safari, Frosty's Fun Center, Christmas Lake Golf Course, Santa's Stables, Santa's Lodge and Lake Rudolph Campground & RV Resort.

The Holiday World theme park has different rides for Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Fourth of July.

(from: wikipedia - santa claus, indiana)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Burma

Arrest of Jesus - Judas' Kiss

We just learned that Jesus had gone off to a place called Gethsemene and prayed to God about the job he knew he had to do.

When he was there with his apostles, Judas came up to Jesus and gave him a kiss.

There were guards with Judas, hired by people that did not like Jesus.
When Judas gave Jesus a kiss, that was to tell the guards who Jesus was, and they came and arrested him.


(from: wikipedia - kiss of judas)

Jesus knew that Judas would betray him, as he had told him at the Last Supper.

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Jesus' Miracles - Healing the Blind

The Equestrian Statue of Gattamelata - Donatello

We just learned about the famous artwork Whistler's Mother.

Another famous piece of art is a sculpture called The Equestrian Statue of Gattamelata made by Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi, also known as Donatello in Padua Italy in 1453.

The statue is made of bronze, which is copper mixed with some other metals.

To make a bronze statue back then, people had to do something called Lost Wax Casting.
First they had to carve a statue out of wax, then cover it with a lot of a type of sand.
Then they took the sand and heated it up until it was a hard ceramic shell, almost like a pottery vase.
When they did that, the wax melted and poured out.
After that they heated up the metal until it was liquid and poured it into the ceramic shell.
They let the metal cool down, and then broke off the pottery.
Underneath was a metal copy of the wax sculpture!
They polished it up and they were all done.

The statue that he made was of a man named Erasmo of Narni, but his nickname was Gattamelata, which means sweet cat.
He was a powerful warrior in Italy a long time ago.

The horse has his foot on a globe which is supposed to mean that Gattamelata could control the world, and he sat on his horse standing up holding a staff and wearing a sword showing that he was powerful.

The big box underneath the horse statue has sculptures on it of some angels, and gates for where he might go when he died.

(from: wikipedia - equestrian statue of gattamelata)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Lunar Lava Tube

German - Green, Blue, Purple, Pink

We just learned that red, yellow, orange in German is rot, orange, gelb.

Let's learn some more colors!

green - grün - sounds like guh-oon /?/

blue - blau - sounds like blah-oh /?/

purple - lila - sounds like lee-lah /?/

pink - rosa - sounds like uh-oza /?/


(from: wikipedia - Goethe Institute)

Do you remember how to say it in Spanish?
verde, azul, morado, rosa

Do you remember how to say it in French?
vert, bleu, violet, rose

Cirrus Clouds

We know now that water vapor in the air that rises up to collect with more water vapor and cool down is what makes clouds.

There are many different types of clouds!
One type is called a cirrus cloud..

They look like thin wispy strands like white string or hair in the sky.
Cirrus clouds are higher up in the sky than most other cloud types.

When you see cirrus clouds, it usually means that a weather front is on it's way soon.
(from: wikipedia - cirrus cloud)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Volcanic Crater