Species Test

We just learned about Forensic Anthropology, the study of a body to see who it is after someone has died.

Another test in forensic science is the Uhlenhuth Test or Species Test.

Way back in 1901 a scientist named Paul Uhlenhuth figured out how to test blood to see if it belonged to a human, or a different type or "species" of animal.

This was important because if a detective found a stain of blood somewhere, people could just lie and say that it was from a cow or a chicken or another animal.

If the blood was from a human, then it was a big deal, especially if someone had been hurt!
Once detectives could use this Uhlenhuth test to see what type of blood they found, people couldn't hide out and lie if someone found a blood stain as evidence of a crime.

One of the most important things about forensic science is finding clues or evidence, and testing to see if people are telling the truth.


(from: wikipedia - blood test)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Combustion Chamber

Darth Vader Jellyfish

We just learned about the Atolla Jellyfish that lives in the deep sea and flashes blue lights.

Another type of jelly is the Darth Vader Jellyfish, also called the bathykorus bouilloni.
It gets the long name from bathy which means "deep" and korus which means "helment", and the scientist Dr. Jean Bouillon who found it.

Because it looks kind of like Darth Vader's helmet, sometimes people call it the Darth Vader jellyfish instead!

This jelly lives very deep in the sea, at around 1,000 meters!
It is very small, only about 2 centimeters wide.
The bell is see through and pale blue, and it has eight tentacles for stinging.
They live mostly around Greenland and Canada.

Because these jellies live so deep, people can not swim down and see them, they can only be seen by robotic submarines that people send deep into the ocean with cameras on them to look around.


(from: wikipedia - bathykorus)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Red Cuttlefish

Palatal Rugae

We just learned about the soft part on the roof of the mouth called the Soft Palate.

Another part of the top of the mouth is the Palatal Rugae.

These are the little ridges on the top of the mouth behind the teeth.
Because of the way they are shaped, they help move food toward the back of the mouth.

Palatal means it is on the hard palate in the mouth, and the word rugae (sounds like roo-gah-ee) means ridges.


(from: wikipedia - rugae)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Human Mouth

Merlon

We've already learned about parts of the tops of castles, like the Wall Walk where people can walk along the edge of the castle behind a wall, the Parapet which is a short wall and the Crenel which is a small gap in the wall.

Another part of a wall walk on the castle is the Merlon.

This is the opposite of the crenel, and is a higher part of the wall where people can hide behind.
So usually castles would have merlons and crenels right next to each other, so they could hide behind the merlon and attack people from the crenels.

Having a bunch of crenels and merlons right after each other is called crenellation.



(from: wikipedia - merlon)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Bodiam Castle

Constantine the Great

We just learned about the Battle of Milvan Bridge where Emperor Constantine saw a vision of God.

The Emperor Constantine was the first emperor to become a Christian.
He tried to bring all of Rome together and be the only emperor, and also changed the laws so people could worship however they wanted.

During his time he also had many battles, and used the Chi-Rho symbol on his army, and he believed it was God helping lead him into battle.

Because he helped Christianity and was the first Christian emperor, he later on was called Constantine the Great.

Under Constantine's rule, the Roman empire went all the way up to England, Spain, France, all the way over to Greece, Turkey and Israel, and even covered the northern part of Africa, like Egypt.


(from: wikipedia - constantine the great)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Nicolaus

Banteay Srei Sculptures

We just learned about the Taj Mahal.

Anther place with a lot of history in sculpture is the country of Cambodia.
This is in southeast Asia, and long ago was part of a land called the Khmer empire.

In the 10th century, there was a temple called the Banteay Srei built in the city of Angkor.
It has many stone cut sculptures all over it, made mostly from red sandstone that was very easy to cut.


(from: wikipedia - banteay srei)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Six Ritual Jades - Bi

Norwegian - Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

We just learned in Norwegian that to say his face is rough is Ansiktet hans er grovt

Let's learn the days of the week in Norwegian!

Monday - Mandag - Sounds like mah-n-dah
Tuesday - Tirsdag - Sounds like tee-sh-dah
Wednesday - Onsdag - Sounds like oh-n-s-dah


(from: wikipedia - norwegian language)

Greek: Δευτέρα (Deftéra), Τρίτη (Tríti), Τετάρτη (Tetárti)

ASL: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

Italian: Lunedi, Martedì, Mercoledì

German: Montag, Dienstag, Mittwoch

Spanish: Lunes, Martes, Miercoles

French: Lundi, Mardi, Mercredi