Science World articles from October 2006

Science World archives from October 2006

Open wide!(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... The average toothbrush won't do when the teeth that need brushing belong to a hippopotamus. So zookeepers at the London Zoo built giant brushes for their two pygmy hippopotamuses, a species of small hippos. Zookeepers previously used...

Poor Pluto.(pluto probes )(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Astronomers have just rewritten planet history, making even the newest textbooks out-of-date. After years of debate, scientists have concluded that Pluto is not a planet. Instead, it belongs to a brand-new category. When scientists first...

What is a planet?(International Astronomical Union standards )(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... The International Astronomical Union (IAU) came up with three criteria that a celestial body has to meet to qualify as a planet: 1 The body must orbit the Sun. A tug from the Sun's gravity causes the current eight planets to revolve around...

Safest seat.(motor vehicle accidents)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Don't gripe if you get stuck in the middle. The car's center backseat is the safest spot in the event of a crash, according to a recent study. Emergency-medicine scientists at the State University of New York in Buffalo analyzed nearly...

Out of the blue.(lake Voui )(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Over the course of several weeks, a blue lake turned blood-red. The shade-shifting Lake Voui (VOO-ee) sits atop a volcano on Vanuatu, an island in the South Pacific. Scientists say that magma deep inside the volcano is partly to blame for...

Big boom.(population growth report by Bureau of the Census)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... The United States is about to pass a major milestone. The U.S. Census Bureau predicts that the nation's population will top 300 million this month. Every year, the number of births and immigrants entering the U.S. dwarfs the number of...

Tricked out.(toy cars )(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... All you need is water to power H-Racer, the latest environmentally friendly car. But don't expect to see automobiles filling up at water fountains. Why not? H-Racer is a toy car that can fit in your hand. When "drivers" fill up with water...

Superman's secrets exposed: how does Superman get all his powers? One physicist tells all.
October 9, 2006... An ordinary-looking man named Clark Kent dashes out of sight. He rips off his glasses and outerwear to reveal the costume of his secret identity: Superman. With one spring of his legs, the superhero soars into the sky. And with unbelievable...

It wants to suck your blood! A fearless scientist uses his body as bait to reel in bloodthirsty leeches.
October 9, 2006... Mark Siddall takes off his shoes and socks. Then he begins to slog through a rain forest in Madagascar. A steady rain pelts down on the leafy vegetation, malting for a slippery, humid hike. Siddall looks down at his feet: A handful of leeches...

Crisis in a northern sea: can marine animals survive warming waters? Science World Editor Patricia Janes sails with researchers to find out.
October 9, 2006... Tiny snowflakes pelt my face as a cold wind blasts my body. I zip my heavy coat up to my chin. Still, it's not enough to escape the chill. Like a turtle ducking into its shell for safety, I lift up my shoulders and tuck my head down. Just...

Name that element!
October 9, 2006... Which element on the periodic table wires electrical appliances, turns octopus blood blue, and lights up the night sky on the 4th of July? Follow these eight clues to find out. Then, turn the page to test your chemistry IQ. OUR POPULAR...

The periodic table.(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... The periodic table is a systematic way to organize Earth's elements, substances that consist of atoms of only one kind. Today, there are 112 known and named chemical elements, Elements are arranged according to their increasing atomic numbers....

Explain this!(YOU CAN DO IT)
October 9, 2006... You can do it, p. 23 Explains This! Last summer, drivers heading to and form the airport in Munich, Germany, saw an eyeful. To celebrate the 2006 World Cup, the Sportswear company Adidas created a massive billboard showing Oliver Kahn,...

Tease your brain.
October 9, 2006... The numbers in the triangle above follow a certain pattern. Can you figure out that pattern and replace each of the five question marks with the correct number? Tease Your Brain To find the number to fill each question mark, Look to...

Science news.(CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING)
October 9, 2006... Science News DIRECTIONS: Read the Science News section on pages 4 to 7. Then, test your knowledge by filling in the letters of the correct answers below. 1. How do hippos in the wild try to keep their teeth and gums healthy? (A)...

Design a superhero challenge.
October 9, 2006... If you could create a superhero, what would be his or her signature superpower? Science World invites students in grades 6 through 10 in the 2006 to 2007 school year to use their imagination and science know-how to take on this challenge....

It's elemental!
October 9, 2006... DIRECTIONS: First, read "Name That Element!" (p.18). Then, solve the clues below to complete this crossword puzzle. To spell out the bonus words, unscramble the letters in parentheses. ACROSS 1. A () is a row on the periodic table. ...

Repeat attack.(vampire bats eating habits)(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... Vampire bats often feed on the blood of the same individuals night after night. Scientists have discovered how the bats find their preferred prey in the dead of night. Udo Groger, a biologist at Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich,...

Scoring good grades.(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... Playing on the soccer team could give your grades a boost. Jim Pivarnik, an exercise physiologist at Michigan State University, recently studied more than 200 6th-graders. He found that teens who regularly engaged in vigorous exercise...

Erupting into song.(volcanoes can be predicted with the data collected from tunes)(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... Will a volcano be the latest musician to top the charts? Scientists have created music using data collected from rumbling volcanoes. The tunes may help researchers predict when a volcano is going to pop. As molten magma rises toward a...

Sheltered seas.(marine animals protected)(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... This year has been good for oceans. During 2006, several new initiatives promised to safeguard thousands of miles of ocean. The new plans will protect marine animals such as sea turtles and monk seals, species that are at risk of dying out. ...

Dropping by.(Messenger to stop at venus on its path to mercury)(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... In October 24, a spacecraft will zip past Venus--Earth's nearest planet neighbor. The Venus flyby is the first of two that NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft will complete on its way to Mercury, the planet closest to the Sun. The close encounters...

Learning the ropes: meerkat pups get a lesson on how to survive in the wild.
October 23, 2006... It turns out that humans aren't the only ones who go to school. Scientists from the University of Cambridge in England recently discovered that meerkat pups attend classes too. But rather than learning subjects like math and history, these...

What makes a bully tick? Scientists search for answers.
October 23, 2006... Josh, a teen from a small town in Pennsylvania, knows what it feels like to be bullied. From 7th through 12th grade, he suffered through name-calling, insults, and cruel jokes. "I dreaded going to school every day," Josh says. "It took every...

Destination: top of the world: find out what it takes to build a railway across the highest ground in the world.
October 23, 2006... Last July, a shiny train chugged along treacherous terrain toward the Tibetan plateau. Called the "roof of the world," this rocky mound is Earth's highest geological structure. It is also the world's biggest plateau--covering an area four times...

Tales of the dead: everyone has a story to tell. Now, with the help of high-tech tools, even ancient mummies can share their secrets.(Cover story)
October 23, 2006... The express mail package arrived at Dr. William Lloyd's office at the University of California-Davis early in the morning. The plain box revealed nothing about its grisly contents. Curious about what was inside, Lloyd opened the box and peered...

Tarantula treat.(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... A young girl in Cambodia pops the legs of a fried tarantula into her mouth. Is this girl tackling a dare for the TV show Fear Factor?. Not quite. Treats like this one are considered a delicacy for many people in Cambodia. Turns out,...

Explain this!(air pollution )(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ANSWER The calf wears a mask to avoid breathing in toxic air. Last April, plumes of ash and smoke spewed from the 5,672 meter (18,609 foot)-tall Ubinas volcano in southern Peru. The airborne debris caused many...

Tease your brain.(YOU CAN DO IT)
October 23, 2006... The first shape above is related to the second shape in the same way that the third shape is related to the missing shape. Figure out this relationship and then replace the question mark with the correct shape. ANSWER [ILLUSTRATION...

Teacher to teach.(science teaching )(Brief article)
October 23, 2006... Tips for using Science World in the classroom Asking questions is an important part of science. Help students practice this skill. Paula Weaver, a science teacher at Merritt Brown Middle School in Panama City, Florida, suggests: Divide...

Science news.(education )
October 23, 2006... DIRECTIONS: Read the Science News section on pages 4 to 6. Then, test your knowledge by filling in the letters of the correct answers below. 1. How does a vampire bat manage to find the same individual prey night after night? (A) It...