Eye Color

We just learned about the Iris that opens and closes the pupil.

Another part of the eye is the Eye Color.

The iris we learned about has two parts in it that help make up the eye color.
One is the stroma, and the other is the IPE, which stands for Iris Pigment Epithelium.

That's a lot of big words, but it basically means a bunch of stringy like parts that can have different colors that all blend together to make up your eye color.

The part the really makes a difference is something called melanin.
This is basically like dark paint that your body makes, and the more if it you make the darker your skin, hair and eyes are.

So someone with black hair, dark brown skin and brown eyes has a lot of melanin.
Someone with blond hair, pale skin and blue eyes, has less melanin.


(from: wikipedia - eye color)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Dental Notation - Palmer

Portcullis

We just learned about the Drawbridge.

Another castle fortification is the Portcullis.

This is a big heavy door to a castle that opens and closes by sliding up and down.

It was set into grooves on both walls, and then using ropes, pulleys and cranks it could be raised and lowered.

Because it was set into the walls and was very heavy, it couldn't be shoved open as easy as a normal door.

Some castles would even make two portcullis doors, so they could trap the attackers in between them.



(from: wikipedia - portcullis)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Himeji Castle

Four Great Uncials

We just learned about the Codex Vaticanus, the oldest copy of the Bible ever found.

Another part of early Christianity is the Four Great Uncials.
The word Uncial sounds like "uh-nt-shell" and it means a kind of ancient writing.

Just like the Codex Vaticanus we just learned about, there are three other old writings called Codex that were discovered through the years.

- Codex Vaticanus, written around 300 AD
- Codex Sinaiticus, written around 330 AD
- Codex Alexandrinus, written around 400 AD
- Codex Ephraemi rescriptus, written around 450 AD

These all have the Old Testament and New Testament in them, and because they were found from different parts of the world over a hundred years apart, the Bible historians try to use them to make sure that the Bibles we read are all correct.



(from: wikipedia - great uncial codices)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Asyncritus - bishop of Hyrcania

Nubian Pyramids

We just learned about the Musawwarat Es Sufra temple in Sudan.

Another group of ancient African sculptures are the Nubian Pyramids in Sudan.

These pyramids were built a few at a time over thousands of years, from 2000 BC to 300 AD.
They are made of granite and sandstone, and some of them are about 100 feet tall and 26 feet wide.

Over 350 pyramids have been found so far, over hundreds of miles.
The pyramids are all tombs for ancient kings and queens.

Sadly some people that were greedy and hunting for treasure came to these pyramids and destroyed over 40 pyramids looking for treasure, even sometimes using dynamite to blow them up.

Many of the pyramids have still not been fully explored, because they are flooded and the walls collapse.



(from: wikipedia - nubian pyramids)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Phoenix Crown of Empress Xiaoduanxian

Norwegian - Counting to sixty nine

We counted to 59 in Norwegian, let's keep going!

60 seksti - sounds like seh-ks dee
61 sekstien - sounds like seh-ks dee ay-uh-n
62 seksti to - sounds like seh-ks dee too
63 sekstitre - sounds like seh-ks dee t-day
64 sekstifire - sounds like seh-ks dee fee-duh
65 sekstifem - sounds like seh-ks dee fam
66 sekstiseks - sounds like seh-ks dee seh-ks
67 sekstisju - sounds like seh-ks dee shoo
68 seksti åtte - sounds like seh-ks dee oh-tuh
69 sekstini - sounds like seh-ks dee nee


(from: wikipedia - norwegian language)

Greek: εξήντα (exínta), εξήντα ένα (exínta éna), εξήντα δύο (exínta dýo), εξήντα τρεις (exínta treis), εξήντα τέσσερις (exínta tésseris), εξήντα πέντε (exínta pénte), εξήντα έξι (exínta éxi), εξήντα επτά (exínta eptá), εξήντα οκτώ (exínta októ), εξήντα εννέα (exínta ennéa)

ASL: fifty, fifty one, fifty two, fifty three, fifty four, fifty five, fifty six, fifty seven, fifty eight, fifty nine

Italian: sessanta, sessantuno, sessantadue, sessantatre, sessantaquattro, sessantacinque, sessantasei, sessantasette, sessantotto, sessantanove

German: sechzig, einundsechzig, zweiundsechzig, dreiundsechzig, vierundsechzig, fünfundsechzig, sechsundsechzig, siebenundsechzig, achtundsechzig, neunundsechzig

Spanish: sesenta, sesenta y uno, sesenta y dos, sesenta y tres, sesenta y cuatro, sesenta y cinco, sesenta y seis, sesenta y siete, sesenta y ocho, sesenta y nueve

French: soixante, soixante et un, soixante-deux, soixante-trois, soixante-quatre, soixante-cinq, soixante-six, soixante-sept, soixante-huit, soixante-neuf

Axle

We just learned about the big long spinning pole called the Shaft.

Another part of machines is an Axle.

An axle is a long spinning pole like a shaft, but it is connected to wheels on either side.
It is also usually used to help hold up something like a car or a train.

Sometimes the axle doesn't spin but the wheels do, kind of like on a bike.
When a bicycle's wheel spins, the metal post inside the wheel does not spin.
This is usually called a spindle instead of an axle.

Cars and trucks are sometimes talked about by how many axles they have.
This really means how many sets of wheels across from each other are there.
So a normal car would be 2 axles, but a big semi truck might have 5 or more axles on it to help spread out the weight carried by each axle.

Sometimes they have more than one set of wheels on an axle to help hold the weight, but that still only counts as one axle.


(from: wikipedia - axle)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)

Freshwater Jellyfish

We just learned about the Creeping Comb Jelly.

Another type of jellyfish is the Freshwater Jellyfish, also called the Craspedcusta Sowerbii.

Just like the name says, this jellyfish lives in freshwater, not in saltwater like the oceans.

It comes from China, but it has been found pretty much everywhere in the world, from North America to Australia.

It grows to about one inch wide, and has tiny little tentacles that have stingers to catch its prey, but the stingers aren't strong enough for a human to even feel the sting.


(from: wikipedia - craspedcusta sowerbii)


Freshwater Jellyfish - The Jellyfish Warehouse

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Southern Sand Octopus