Hydraulics

We just learned about the Negative Feedback.

Another part of machine science is Hydraulics.

This means using the power of water to move machines.
The science of hydraulics goes back thousands of years, and can be as simple as just a water wheel that is using the power of a river to turn the wheel.

Any system that uses water to move something is using hydraulics.


(from: wikipedia - hydraulics)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Ariane

Snow Leopard

We just learned about the Black Panther.

Another type of big cat is the Snow Leopard, also called Panthera Uncia.

This is a big cat living in the mountains in Asia, mostly in China.
There are not a lot of these cats left, less than 10,000 in the world.
They live up in the mountains at elevations around 10,000 feet above sea level.

A snow leopard's fur is white and grey with black spots on its head and neck, with rosettes on its fur.
It has a bushy tail, a white belly, and eyes that are green or grey.

Because the snow leopard lives in cold places, it has longer fur than other leopards, and short ears that don't get too cold.
When it sleeps it can use its bushy tail as a coat, and it has big nostrils to help bring in a lot of fresh air to keep it warm.
These cats have very big paws to help it walk on snow like snow shoes, with fur on the bottom to help them keep their grip on rocks.

They are about 2 feet tall, 5 feet long, with a 3 foot tail and they weigh about 120 pounds.
Snow leopards can grunt and meow, but they can not roar like other big cats because of a difference in their throat.





(from: wikipedia - snow leopard)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Moon Jellyfish

Rapid Eye Movement

We just learned about eye movement of Smooth Pursuit.

Another part of eye movement is Rapid Eye Movement also called REM.

Sometimes when a person is sleeping, their eyes will move around quickly in a bunch of different directions over and over again for a while.
The quick or rapid eye movement also happens at the same time as a lot of activity in the brain even while you are asleep.
Some scientists think that REM is what happens when you are having very active dreams.


(from: wikipedia - rapid eye movement sleep)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Foliate Papillae

Adrien de Gerlache

We just learned about the Antarctic Territories.

The first human to ever try to make it to the South Pole in Antarctica was Adrien de Gerlache.

In 1897 AD, a sailor from the country of Belgium named Adrien de Gerlache got 18 people together to try and make it to the south pole.
One of the sailors on the ship was Roald Amundsen from Norway, and another was Frederick Cook from America.

Their ship called the Belgica got down to the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula, and then the water turned to ice and their ship got stuck.

They were stuck there for a whole year, trying to survive in the cold by hunting penguins and seals.

From May through July, they had to live in total darkness because of the long winter!

A few people died and some others went insane, but people got really sad when their cat Nansen died, and they buried him in Antarctica.

In March of 1899 they finally got loose from the ice and sailed back home.
They didn't make it to the south pole, but they could tell everyone what it was like to live for a year in Antarctica.



(from: wikipedia - adrien de gerlache)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cairo Citadel

Christianity in Bulgaria

We just learned about the Glagolitic Script.

Another part of early Christianity is Christianity in Bulgaria.

In a lot of parts of Eastern Europe, people still either did not know about Christianity or they did not believe in God.

Christianity was very well known in the Western parts of Europe, like Italy and England.
Bulgaria is a country in the Eastern part of Europe, just east of Greece, and just north of Turkey.
Because it was in a very special place at the edge of eastern and western Europe, people really tried hard to help spread Christianity there, so that maybe it would help it become more popular in the East.

King Boris I got baptized in 864 AD, and since then for over a thousand years there have been a lot of Christians in Bulgaria.


(from: wikipedia - christianization of bulgaria)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: First Apology

Charles Sumner - Anne Whitney

We just learned about the Abraham Lincoln by Vinnie Ream.

Another famous American sculpture is the statue of Charles Sumner made in 1875 by Anne Whitney.

Anne was born in 1821, and through her life worked hard to be a sculptor.
Through her life she worked hard to fight for women's equal rights, to help save the environment, and to help people see that slavery was bad.

Because she was a woman, people would not let her go to some schools because they thought it was inappropriate for women to make sculptures of men's bodies.

She moved to Rome for a while and learned from some of the master sculptors there, and when she came back she made a statue of Charles Sumner who was famous for being against slavery.

There was a contest in Boston for who could make the best statue, so she sent in her statue of Charles Sumner.

She won the competition, but then when they found out the statue had been made by a woman they turned her away and picked someone else.

Anne Whitney went on to make a lot more sculptures of men and women, using her sculptures to help try and show people that women should be equals, and that slavery is bad.


(from: wikipedia - anne whitney)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Rajagopuram

Russian - They are excited

We just learned that in Russian I am happy is Я счастлив (ya shastliv),
you are sad is Ты грустный (Ty grustnyy),
and he is angry is Он сердится (On serditsya).

Let's learn how to say they are excited.

Они взволнованы (Oni vzvolnovany)

They - Они (Oni) - Sounds like oh-nee 文A

are excited - взволнованы - (vzvolnovany) Sounds like v-z-voh-l-noh-vah-nee 文A

So all together Они взволнованы (Oni vzvolnovany) sounds like oh-nee v-z-voh-l-noh-vah-nee.


(from: wikipedia - russian academy of sciences)

Norwegian: De er begeistret

Greek: Είναι ενθουσιασμένοι

ASL: They are excited

Italian: Sono eccitati

German: Sie sind aufgeregt

Spanish: Ellos estan emocionados

French: Ils sont excité