Castles With Style

 This week, Dylan, one of my grandsons ask me to write about castles. I asked him what kind of castle he wanted. He said his castle needed to have walls that couldn’t be broken. It has a drawbridge made of diamonds. There is a moat of lava surrounding the castle. Guarding this mighty fortress is an elite team of 1000 ninja alligators wearing armor.  Pretty cool idea, don’t you think?

So I got my friends at AI to do some drawing for me. (Actually I don’t know any AI computers personally, but they do some cool work if you ask nicely.) Here’s what they came up with.

So what would you find in a castle? Of course there is the wall. That’s for protection. The main gate has a huge iron gate. The diamond drawbridge can be lifted so enemies can’t walk right in. I don’t think many attackers would want to walk on the lava.

Inside the walls you would find the bailey a large courtyard area that has other buildings. There is a great hall where everyone can eat. The king’s throne would also be there. There would be a well for water and maybe a fountain. (I personally hope it’s made of chocolate.) There would be shops, a blacksmith to make weapons, and a stable to keep his flying horses. (Hey, he’s got alligator guards. Why not flying horses?) In the many towers on the wall are rooms for people to sleep.

The whole castle is guarded by 1000 ninja alligator guards in heavy armor. Each one has a diamond tipped spear. You don’t want to make them mad!

It’s almost sunset, so King Dylan is preparing for his famous fireworks display. People from all the surrounding villages gather to see the spectacular show. King Dylan is a wise, kind, and mighty king. He makes sure all of his subjects have the food they need and are protected at all times. Long live the King!

Well that was fun! I wonder what I’ll write about next week?

Until then,

Love Papaw.

Slime Time!

Almost every kid I have met likes to play with slime. It’s a common toy in many stores. It comes in all kinds of colors, textures, and levels of “sliminess” (called viscosity) and can even come with glitter or other texture items in it. It tends to get dirty quickly and will often dry out if left uncovered. This mean you need to keep going back for more.

But did you know you can make your own slime right at home? Papaw will show you his formula that he uses at school. You will need:

1.       A pan

2.     Water (1 quart)

3.     A box of Twenty Mule Team Borax

4.     A bottle of Elmer’s white glue.

5.     Food coloring, glitter or other things you want in your slime.

 

• Start be heating a 1 quart of water in a small sauce pan. Add about 1 cup of borax. Slowly stir until all (or most of it) is dissolved. Set it aside to cool.
• Mix 1-part glue with water.
• Add the color and glitter and mix again.
• Slowly add the borax solution a little at a time, mixing as you go until it becomes slime.
• Have fun playing!

**Be sure to keep it off of clothes and furniture, and don’t put it in your mouth!

Experiment with the glue and the borax mixture. If you add less water to the glue it will make thicker slime. It might even act like rubber!

Here are a couple videos about making slime using other materials you might have at home.

Hope you have fun!

Love Papaw.

 

Cicadas!

 

This week at the State Park I started noticing holes in the ground along the camping paths. They are about as big around as Papaw’s little finger. There are lots of creatures that make holes in the ground here, but at this time of year, it is probably made by an insect called the annual cicada. I put a picture of one on the left. They start out as tiny eggs laid by their mother in small slits in a tree branch. Soon they drop to the ground and burrow into the soil. It is a good thing that their mother started them up in a tree. They will spend the next year drinking sap from the tree’s roots. They continue to grow and stay in the ground over winter. In early summer, they begin to slowly dig their way to the surface. As they emerge, they leave those distinctive holes in the ground. They crawl to the nearest tree and climb part way up the trunk. They don’t look like their parents yet. They have a hard shell without wings that they need to shed.

Here a picture of what they look like when they first come out. They hold tight to the tree and begin the process of molting, which means they are going to come out of their hard shell. The shell splits down the back and they begin to pull themselves out. Their wings begin to unfold and stretch out, much like the way a butterfly does. Soon Their wings dry and harden. They fly into the trees and find a soft twig to land on. The new adults will drink sap from the trees for the rest of the summer. They will mate, lay more eggs, and then die in the fall. For the rest of the summer though, you will be able to hear their buzzing high up in the trees.

Here is a short video that shows what they sound like.

Well, that’s all for this week. Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Love, Papaw.

Crickets: Nature’s Thermometers

 

Almost everyone has heard crickets chirping in the evening. But did you know that they are actually telling you the temperature outside? Today Papaw is going to give you a quick formula to calculate the temperature by listening to the crickets in your yard. You can even tell your math teacher that you did some math practice over the summer!

The Old Farmer’s Almanac has helped people with times for planting crops and preparing for the weather for over 200 years. Some things are pretty accurate; others are about 50/50. The formula they give for crickets has been tested scientifically and seems to be pretty accurate. You could even do an experiment on your own. All you need is a thermometer, a watch or clock, your awesome addition skills, and some crickets.

Crickets are cold-blooded (they don’t produce their own heat) so they stay the same temperature as the surrounding air. If they are cold, they cannot move as fast. When they warm up, they get more energy to chirp. If it’s too cold or too hot, they say “forget it” and go take a nap. Crickets usually don’t chirp if the temperature is under 50℉ (Fahrenheit, that’s the temperature we use here in the US.) or over 100 ℉.

To Convert Cricket Chirps to Degrees Fahrenheit:

Just count the number of chirps in 14 seconds, then add 40 to get the temperature. The number you get will be an approximation of the outside temperature.

Example: 30 chirps + 40 = 70°F

Here is a simple guide I made so you can check out what the crickets are telling you.

 

 So next time you hear a cricket, check to see what temperature he is telling you!

Until next time,

Love Papaw.

The Horseshoe Crab

Way back when, even before your parents were born, Papaw had a chance to see a bizarre but wonderful creature at the ocean’s shore. I was travelling for the college in a music group. That day we were in Maryland near the Chesapeake Bay. Since I had never even seen the ocean, I got up really early and went to the beach. There I found this creature – the horseshoe crab.

They are not really crabs but are more closely related to spiders and ticks. They have 4 pairs of walking legs and a pair that act like pinchers to grab their food. Their favorite foods are sea worms, mollusks (like clams) and other crustaceans.

They normally like living in deeper waters but come close to shore to spawn. They can lay 20,000 eggs each night for several days. That is where Papaw saw them. They are fun to watch. They can even swim upside-down! They are only found in the Atlantic Ocean. They can be found from Maine all the way down to Mexico. They are sometimes called “living fossils”. That’s because their fossils look just like they do today. They have 9 eyes and can see very well. It helps them find their food.

Horseshoe crabs have helped us develop medicines. They have blue blood. There is a special chemical in their blood that can tell us if vaccines or other drugs are ready to give to sick people. Scientist draw out some blood and then release it back into the ocean. It usually doesn’t hurt them. Still, we need to be careful and take care of them. They need clean water and safe beaches to lay their eggs.

(https://oceanconservancy.org/blog/2020/05/19/11-facts-horseshoe-crabs-will-blow-mind)

I hope you like learning about horseshoe crabs. Here’s a short video about them.

Until next time,

Love Papaw.

Fireworks!

 (This week both the Musings page and Notes from Papaw have the same post. I’m either lazy or on vacation. Honestly, I’m not sure which.)

This Saturday is the Fourth of July. People around the nation will attend parades, have picnics, light of fireworks at their home, and if your city is having one, attend a professional fireworks display. There you can see bursts of wonderful colors and different shapes, golden showers of sparkles, and eye-widening kabooms!

Have you ever wondered how professional fireworks are made? Ya, so did I. So let’s take a look at the anatomy of a typical firework. When you see a firework display from the launching end, It looks like a bunch of tubes all lined up together. These tubes are called mortars. Inside the tube is the shell. The shell is made of two parts, The lifting charge and the color pellets. The lifting charge is located on the bottom of the shell that is usually made of black powder. It is there to lift the top section high into the air. This makes it easier to see. It also keeps the explosions, sparks, and any hot embers away from people and high enough to burn out before they hit the ground. The top section of the shell has the colorful part. It contains small pellets called stars. These can be made to produce different colors, shapes, and noises. Some of the designs are proprietary, which means they were invented by the firework makers, and the formulas are closely guarded secrets. There are usually at least two fuses. The first fuse lights the lift charge. Once the firework is safely in the air, a second fuse, sometimes called the timer fuse, causes the section with the stars to explode (the burst charge) and starts the stars burning also. They now can even create designs with the fireworks. One special firework that I have seen ends up making a smiley face!

The colors usually come from various metal salts. A salt is a combination of a metal and one or more nonmetals. Table salt is sodium chloride, made of the metal sodium and a gas called chlorine. Here is a list of the most commonly used salts.

Strontium: Red

Calcium: Orange

Sodium: Yellow

Barium: Green

Copper: Blue

Strontium + Copper: Purple

Magnesium, Aluminum + Titanium: White

(Source: https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/science-at-home/diy-science-fun/the-science-of-fireworks)

And to think these all started with the Chinese putting gun powder into long bamboo tubes. This is thought to have happened somewhere between 600-800 AD, during the Tang Dynasty.

For those of you who don’t have a fireworks display in their home town, here is a display from 2025, courtesy of the Happiest Place on Earth, Disneyland. Enjoy!

Why Are There So Many Mosquitoes?!

It’s summer and the mosquitoes are flying fast and furious. If you live in a mosquito free area, count yourself fortunate. The only place we have been where we really don’t see many mosquitoes is at the ocean. They don’t like salt water. Otherwise, wherever you go around here the mosquitos are active. But where do they all come from?

Mosquitos are in the group of insects with flies and gnats. They spend the first part of their life under water, and then fly in the air as adults. Interestingly, the female is the only one that bites. She needs the protein in blood to make here eggs. The eggs are laid on the surface of a stagnant pool of fresh water. When they hatch they become “wigglers” in the water. They don’t have gills so they need to come up to the surface to breath. They have a tube on their tail which they use as a snorkel. When they have grown enough, they float to the surface and form a pupa, or resting stage. After a few days, they hatch out as adult mosquitos. The males do not have the long straw like mouth parts to drink blood. They mostly feed on nectar from flowers.

A female mosquitos wings beat super-fast, sometimes 1000 times a second. That what make the buzzing sound if they get close to your ear. They are drawn to the carbon dioxide that we breath out. They can smell it 100 feet away! There are over 3500 kinds of mosquitoes in the world. Only Antarctica is mosquito free.

Some mosquitoes can carry dangerous diseases. That why it’s important to try and avoid them if you can. Here are some hints.

·       Wear an approved mosquito repellant. There are kid safe types if you do not like DEET.

·       Where loose fitting, light colored clothing. Long pants are recommended.

·       Limit time outside at dawn and dusk – the most active time for mosquitoes.

·       Dump out all standing water or get “mosquito dunks” so they cannot breed.

·       Make sure your doors and windows have tight fitting screens without holes.

·       You could get an electric mosquito zapper for your outside patio. It’s fun to listen to them get zapped. Hey, at least they are not biting you!

·       Some people put up bat houses. Bats eat thousands of mosquitoes every night!

·       If you do get bitten and it starts to itch, try not to scratch it. It might get infected. They make anti-itch cream that your parents can put on the bite to make it feel better.

 

Here’s a fun video about mosquitoes.

Well I hope you have a fun mosquito-free summer!

Until next time,

Love Papaw.

Father's Day

 

This Sunday is Father’s Day. In the United States it always falls on the third Sunday of June. As far as we know, Father’s Day was started by a lady named Sonora Smart Dodd who lived in Spokane, Washington. She started it to honor her widowed father who was a Civil War veteran. Because his wife had died, he had to raise 6 children alone. Mother’s Day had just become popular and she thought it would be good the honor fathers. Although one local church had a service for fathers to remember the Monongah mining disaster in 1907, it wasn’t until June 19, 1910 that the celebration went state wide.

It took a while for it to catch on. In 1924 President Calvin Coolidge added his support to the observance and urged other states to also celebrate it. President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation in 1966, establishing the third Sunday in June as Father's Day. Still, it wasn’t until 1972 that President Richard Nixon signed legislation making Father's Day a permanent national holiday. (https://www.history.com/articles/fathers-day)

So how will you celebrate Father’s Day? First, be sure to give your father a great big hug and tell him you love him. (It works for grandfathers also!) You could make or buy a card for him. You might even serve him breakfast in bed. If you can’t cook yet you might want to ask mom for help so you don’t burn the toast. Some families go to church together; others might go to the park for a picnic. You could even do both. Just be sure you let your father know how much you appreciate him and all the hard work he does for your family. (You might even clean your room. That is sure to surprise him!) My father and I used to go fishing together a lot. I think we may have even fished on Father’s Day after the picnic was done. Whether you get him a card, his morning coffee or a breakfast burrito, be sure to let him know how much you love him. And don’t forget to say thank you to your Heavenly Father for all he has done for you!

I hope you all have a great time celebrating Father’s Day this year!

Love Papaw.

Say NO to Trash!

Mema and Papaw just spent nine days at the beach. It’s one of Mema’s favorite places. One thing that really makes Papaw sad is when people leave trash on the ground. Sometimes it is right by the trash cans! I know that animals like raccoons and squirrels can pull things out of trash cans and add to the litter on the ground, but most of it comes from us humans. I saw plastic bags, wrappers, water bottles, and even old socks on the beach. I try to pick up the things I come across, but one person can only do so much. Also, sometimes it may not be healthy to clean something up without gloves.

Here are some helpful guidelines when you are out enjoying nature.

1. If you drop it, pick it up. If you make a mess, help clean it up.

2. Put wrappers in your pocket  or a bag until you can find a trash can. Most places have them spaced all around.

3. Leave an area you use for camping, a picnic, or other activity cleaner than when you arrived.

4. Try to pick up any trash directly in your path. If everyone did this, there wouldn’t be any trash.

5. Be responsible with the things you use. If it’s a windy day be sure everything is secure. Make sure animals can’t get to it.

6 Recycle if possible.

7. Don’t throw trach in the recycle bins. It makes a real mess for those recycling it.

If we all do our part, we will have cleaner parks, beaches, and roadways. It will also help the animals. We don’t want them eating trash and then getting sick!

Have fun this summer!

Love, Papaw

 

Campfires & S’mores!

This last week Papaw and Mema were on vacation. One of the things Mema loves is making s’mores over the campfire. Papaw usually makes the fire. I like to cut up some of the logs with my hatchet so that I have some smaller pieces. These pieces are called kindling. I stack them up like a teepee and put a fire starter block under it. When the kindling gets burning pretty good I can add the bigger pieces. Soon we have a roaring fire. It feels nice and warm on a cool evening at the beach.

Fire needs 3 things to happen, fuel, heat and oxygen. The fuel is the wood. The match gives it the heat it needs to get started. The oxygen comes from the air. As long as you have these, you will have a good fire. 

Once the fire dies down you will have lots of red, glowing coals. That’s when it’s s’mores time! Mema toasts a marshmallow til it’s golden brown. Then she squeezes it between two pieces graham cracker with a piece of chocolate inside. The hot marshmallow melts the chocolate and your s’mores will be ooie-gooey delicious!  After a couple more s’mores ( who could eat just one?) we sit and enjoy a warmth as tiny flames flicker in the fire pit. Some people even tell stories or sing songs. At the end of the night it is important that you put out the coals. You don’t want to start a fire in the middle of the night. 

Well it’s time for s’mores so until next week!

Love Papaw  

How Do Light Bulbs Work?

Although Thomas Edison is often credited with the invention of the incandescent light bulb, It really took a series of events to develop it. He is the one who discovered the best filament to use. But I guess I’m ahead of myself. Let’s talk about what a light bulb is first.

There are several kinds of light bulbs. Incandescent lights, the lights with the glowing wire inside, where the first. They contain a coiled wire filament, a clear bulb, and a screw type base to connect it to the electricity. Most of the air is removed from the bulb so that the filament doesn’t burn up. This makes the light last a lot longer. The filament is made of a metal, usually tungsten, that has a high resistance. That means it’s hard for the electricity to push through it. This causes the filament to heat up and glow. If you hold your hand by it, you can feel the heat. Sometimes they make the glass of the bulb have a frosted look. This makes the light spread out a little so it doesn’t hurt your eyes.

Fluorescent lights are usually a tube of glass that has a smaller filament on both sides. The inside of the tube is coated with a chemical called phosphorus. There is hardly any air inside, but they add a very small amount of mercury vapor.  When the filaments are electrified, they get the molecules of mercury vapor all excited. The molecules move around very quickly until they give off a burst of energy. This energy hits the phosphorus and causes it to glow. As long as the electricity is on, the molecules keep moving and releasing energy. This give you light.

Neon lights are glass tubes with a special gas in them, usually neon or argon. The light has a special device that gives them a high voltage shock, causing the gas to glow. Each gas has its own color.

A newer kind of light is the LED.

It stands for light emitting diode. They come in various shapes and colors. They are made with a special device called a diode that is a type of microchip. When a current of electricity passes through it, it gives off light. They do not need to use very much energy, but still produce a good amount of light. They are small and can last a long time. This makes them useful for many things. You see them in Christmas lights, flashlights, and all kind of computer stuff. Most of the new lightbulbs are LEDs.

If you still want to know more, here is a short video about it.

Hope you like it!

Until next time,

Love Papaw.

How Do Bugs Breathe?

That is a bigger question than you would think. When you hear bug, most people only think of insects. But not all bugs are insects. Rollie pollies are actually  crustaceans. Spiders and ticks are arachnids. Then there are centipedes, millipedes and all kinds of worms. Yet they all get put into the group called bugs.

Most bugs do not have lungs. The have tiny holes in their abdomens called spiracles. These can be opened and closed as needed. These lead to little channels called tracheae that carry oxygen to the cells. Some bugs just let air come in by itself; Others, like grasshoppers, can expand and contract their abdomens to obtain more oxygen. Bugs don’t have blood. They have a clear, yellowing fluid called hemolymph that carries nutrients and oxygen inside their bodies.

Some creatures, like spiders, have what are called book lungs. They are structures that have thin, stacked, membranes that look something like pages in a book. They can fan these and let oxygen in. Others like rollie pollies have gills! They need to always remain moist. That’s why the need to live in moist areas like under rotten logs.

Water insects like the larva of mosquitoes and midges have an air snorkel that they can use at the water’s surface to breathe while they look for prey under the water. Others have visible gills. Some insect even carry a bubble of air around their abdomens while they are diving under water.

There are even bugs, like worms, that can breathe through their skin. They also need to always stay moist so that oxygen can absorb into their bodies.

Because most bugs have to get their oxygen these ways, it puts a limit on how big they can grow. It is thought that back in history (probably before the Great Flood) oxygen levels may have been greater. This could help them to grow much bigger, something we can see in some fossils.

What amazing creatures we have around us! I hope you liked hearing about them.

Until next time,

Love Papaw.

Gardening with Papaw

 

Spring is here at last! This is the time of year that people start planting their gardens. Some grow flowers. Others like to grow vegetables and fruit. Papaw likes to do both! I like flowers because they look pretty and also make Mema happy. I like to grow vegetables and fruit because I like to eat them. This year I’m a little behind, because things have been very busy. I may not put out as many plants this year.

We started in the fall with a flower for Mema. It’s called hydrangea. They can be white, pink, blue or purple. She like the purple ones. It’s still kinda small but it really had a lot of flowers this spring. It’s right by the back door so we can see it if we go out in the evening.

I also planted 3 tomato plants. Two are called cherry tomatoes because they have tiny cute tomatoes. If you look close at the picture you can see little tomatoes already. One is red; The other is a golden yellow. They will taste really good in salads and on Mema’s homemade pizzas! The other tomato is called a “zebra tomato” because it has purple and yellow stripes. It think that might look good on a hamburger.

I still would like to plant a few peppers. Mema doesn’t like them hot, but I do! I’m going to plant some Jalapeños and some cayenne peppers. Cayenne pepper are really hot, but I think they taste good on almost anything. Auntie B likes hot peppers also.  Maybe Mema will make some of her homemade salsa for us. Yum!

You could also grow corn or beans, They are fun to grow. I may even try to grow some more pumpkins or cantaloupe this year. They take a lot of room so I’m going to have to look for a good spot.

Gardening as a family can be fun. What would you like to grow?

Until Next Time,

Love, Papaw.

Jumping Spiders!

 

I know that a lot of people don't like spiders, so you may not want mom to look at the picture for this one. There are some spiders that I don't want hanging around. I don't like black widows and I'm not really fond of cellar spiders either. Still, there is one spider that I find really cool. It's the jumping spider. They just look happy and don't really bother people so I don't mind watching them or having them hang around in the flowers. Well, as long as they don't eat the butterflies.

Like all spiders, jumping spiders have 8 legs and two body parts, a cephalothorax (they have no neck) and an abdomen. They are usually covered with fuzzy hairs and can often be very colorful. they are different for other spiders in that two of their eight eyes are really big. This helps them see what is around them. Most spiders cannot see very well. Because of this, they are hunting spiders. They can jump long distances to attack insects like flies and caterpillars. They would be very good ion the track team. Some can jump 50 times their length. I bet you can't do that!

They don't usually spin webs but instead use their silk as as safety live when they make long jumps. Kind of like spider man. They do make little silk tents to sleep in. 

Jumping spiders live in almost every country around the world. If you look at your flowers or even on the outside walls of your house, you can probably find one in no time. 'My favorite jumping spider is Lucas the Jumping Spider. I put a shots video of him on here. He can be pretty funny!

Until next time!

Love, Papaw.

https://kids.kiddle.co/Jumping_spider

How Do Birds Breathe?

This week my second oldest grandson ask me what a one-way breath loop was. My first response was, what? (They are getting too smart!) I had to look it up. I found out it was related to the way birds breathe. I’ve taught biology for years and never paid any attention to it. I mean, birds have lungs so they breathe in and breathe out. No big deal right?

Turns out, it’s a huge deal. Whereas humans and other mammals breathe in to fill their lungs and breathe out to empty them reversing the flow each time, birds on the other hand keep air going through the system in one direction all the time. It means there is fresh air constantly flowing through their lungs all the time. They do this by using a series of air sacks that keep the air moving through their lungs. Only after it goes through the whole circuit does it get exhaled.

Birds need this system because they need extra oxygen to fly and they also may spend a lot of time at higher altitudes where the air is thinner. They also breathe many times faster than most mammals. Smaller birds like canaries may breathe 60-100 times a minute! Larger soaring birds like vultures may only breathe 18 times per minute. (Humans average 12.)

According to https://www.birdfact.com/articles/how-do-birds-breathe:

A bird takes two breaths to complete one full cycle of breathing. Here’s a summary of how it works:

Inhalation: Air flows in through the nostrils, moves through the trachea, and fills the posterior air sacs.

Exhalation: Air leaves the posterior air sacs and travels into the lungs, moved by the contraction of muscles in the ribcage. Gaseous exchange takes place in the lungs, where the waste carbon dioxide is swapped for fresh oxygen.

Inhalation: Air leaves the lungs, flowing into the anterior air sacs.

Exhalation: Air passes from the anterior air sacs into the trachea, leaving the beak through the nostrils.

That seems like a lot of work, but if you are a bird, you need it. Isn’t it amazing how God has given each creature the things they need to survive? He sure is a great designer!

Well, my head is spinning from all that science stuff. Until next time!

Love Papaw.

Magnetism: Magic or Just Cool Science?

 Have you ever wondered how a magnet works? On the surface, it almost looks like magic. It can pick up things made of iron. It can repel other magnets. It can even tell us north and south. Magnets are all around us. They keep your papers on the refrigerator. The can hold closet doors shut. They help motors to turn in all of our gadgets. But how does it work?

A magnet is a material that produces a magnetic field that attracts the metals Iron, Nickel, and Cobalt. It happens when most or all of the molecules line up going the same direction. This gives a metal a North and South Pole. Magnetic lines of force form like in the diagram. The more molecules that are aligned, the stronger the magnetic force.

There are two main types of magnets – temporary and permanent.  Temporary magnets are usually made of softer metal and do not keep their charge well. They are often used as electromagnets. These are magnetic when an electric current is flowing around them but lose their magnetism when the electricity is turned off. They can be used in cranes that move iron pieces from one place to another. They are usually mad of soft iron.

Permanent magnets are magnetic
all the time. They are usually made of much harder metal. The strongest magnets are mad of something called “neodymium”. They are usually made of three metals, neodymium, iron, and boron. They are so strong that larger ones have are really hard to pull apart. They can actually hurt you if you get pinched between them.

Magnets are fun to use, but you need to be careful and take care of them. Here are some rules for safe magnet use.

1. Never heat a magnet. If it gets too hot it may lose its magnetism.

2. Do not pound on them or drop them. This can disorganize the molecules and weaken the magnet.

3. Use a “keeper if provided with your magnet.

4. Never put magnets in your mouth, especially the neodymium magnets! There have been people who ended up with holes in their intestine because the magnets were so strong.

If you don’t have any magnets at home, there are many kinds of kits you can buy in stores and online. Many have little extras that make magnets even more fun. Have fun exploring!

Love, Papaw.

 Here is a fun video about magnets.

How Do We Grow?

So what really happens when we grow up? Human growth happens in three ways, physically, emotionally, and mentally. We also can grow spiritually if we choose to. We all start as a single cell that starts to divide. Soon there are many cells that are basically exactly alike. Then something fantastic happens. The cells begin to differentiate. That’s a big word for they become different. There are signals that are controlled by the genes we have (our DNA) that cause some cells to change into heart cells, nerve cells, skin cells, brain cells, and a whole lot of other kinds. There are even genes called Hox genes that tell the cells where they are supposed to go. Imagine having brain cells in our feet. That just wouldn’t work! Once these different cells are in the right place they continue to divide. Soon there are millions of cells and the tiny human is starting to look like a baby.

Once the baby is born, it begins to eat and grow. Some cells stop dividing. The brain has all of the cells it needs. The bones continue to elongate by adding new cells to an area called the growth plate. Our skin keeps dividing and stretching to keep up. Our heart and other organs grow and mature. There are many hormones and other chemicals that help keep everything growing on schedule. One gland, located at the base of our brains called the pituitary gland is like the head guy. He tells all the other parts of the body when to grow, stop, or do their various functions. The pituitary gland is the one that secretes a hormone called growth hormone. Without it we would stay small. When we reach about 18-20, we may stop growing taller, but that doesn’t mean we are finished growing. Our brain’s keep developing. The cartilage in our nose and ears never really stops growing. If we get injured the body repairs itself by growing new cells.
We also grow emotionally. We learn how to relate to other people and solve problems. We can learn from our parents, our friends, and especially from reading the Bible. The more we experience and see how others adjust to situations, the more mature emotionally we can become. It may take some time and you will have to be patient.

We grow mentally by learning new things. We go to school. We learn skills from our parents and other relatives. One way we can grow mentally is to read. Books can teach us many things about nature, the world, and even ourselves. The greatest book is the Bible. It can help us grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. If we do all four we can become the person God intended us to be and be able to do all the good things he wants us to accomplish.

There’s a whole lot more to growing up that you will learn along the way, but I hope this helps!

Till next time!

Love Papaw.

Celebrating Easter in Other Countries

 This week the Musings and the Notes from Papaw collide. (It means they’re both the same.)

Have you ever wondered how other countries celebrate Easter? Easter is when we celebrate the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ. In America, many go to a special church service, have a special Easter lunch with family, and decorate with flowers like the Easter lilies in this picture. Children often get Easter baskets with eggs that are supposed to come from the “Easter Bunny”.

Easter Around The World.

Here in America, it’s the beginning of Spring. For the Southern Hemisphere however, it’s turning to Fall. Things are getting colder. In Australia, many celebrate with hot cross buns - a spiced sweet bread marked with a cross. They think of rabbits as pests so there is no Easter Bunny. Instead they have the Easter Bilby, an endangered species that kind of looks like a rabbit. In Vanuatu, a South Pacific island, they like to have a sunrise service for worship. In Columbia, there are solemn processions in the streets during Holy week.

In Africa churches are adorned with butterflies, flowers and bright colors. The night before Easter morning they have a vigil that begins quietly but erupts into singing and dancing at sunrise.

In the Philippines, Easter morning begins with two separate processions. The men follow an image of Jesus, while the women follow one of his mother Mary. At the church, they encourage each other that Jesu has risen.

In India, there is not a very large percentage of Christians. Instead they have a Spring festival. They often purchase lavishly decorated egg for their children.

In Europe, there are many different fun traditions. Germany is the originator of the Easter egg. They even put them on Easter trees.  In Poland, families gather for Easter Sunday breakfast, which often includes a sweet bread called babka. In the French town of Bessières, people gather together to cook a giant omelet. It is said to go back to the time of Napoleon. I guess he really liked omelets!

Meals, festivals, and candy are all fun as long as we don’t forget What Easter really stands for. Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord was crucified, buried in a tomb, and according to the scriptures raised the third day to take His place in heaven as our mediator and High Priest before God. Enjoy the season; just don’t forget the sacrifice!

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Matthew 28:5-8

Until Next Week!

Most information is from https://www.wycliffe.org/blog/featured/how-easter-is-celebrated-in-countries-around-the-world

How Do They Make Nuclear Energy?

When you say nuclear energy, many people have some interesting ideas about how it works. Some people think you can just put wires into the fuel and get electricity. Others think it’s like magic. Some have no idea at all how it works. So today I’m going to try to simplify the process for you.

 Except for solar and bioluminescence, power plants uses turning magnets and coils of wire to create an electrical current. Wind power and Hydroelectric (water) plants use motion to move the magnets and coils. For everything else we use steam. Normally we just burn something to heat up water. The water turns to steam and expands. This turns a set of blades called turbine blades. The blades are connected to a shaft that turns the magnetic coils inside a machine called an alternator or generator. This produces the  electricity we use every day. We can burn oil, gas, coal, wood, or even trash. Geothermal power uses steam from the hot areas inside the crust of the Earth to run a turbine but we don’t have to burn anything.

For nuclear power, the heat source is made from an element called uranium. The fuel is made into pellets or rods, usually made of uranium oxide. The uranium atoms naturally fall apart in a process called fission (think division) and create a lot of heat. This heat finally gets transferred to water and creates lots of steam. The steam is what turns the turbine generator. The power plants have tall things that look like smoke stacks that are used to cool the water down before it leaves the plant. The white “smoke” is really just water vapor called steam. Because they use so much water, many nuclear power plants are built by rivers or by the ocean.

Nuclear power plants can run for many years using a small amount of fuel. The tough part is what to do with the fuel rods when they wear out. They are still radioactive (giving off lots of radiation) and can be very dangerous. Usually, the old fuel rods are sealed in watertight, very strong containers and taken to a special place to be buried.

Nuclear reactors are also used in aircraft carriers, submarines, and even satellites. They allow the ships, subs, or satellites to run for a long time without refueling. Here is a picture of a typical nuclear reactor.

 

I hope you learned something today. See you next time!

Love, Papaw.

What Do You Mean Radiation?!

 

When you hear the word radiation, what comes to mind? Does it sound scary? What is it anyway? Are there different kinds? Is it safe or dangerous? There are so many questions we could ask. Today I want to help you understand what radiation is, what it’s used for, and whether or not it is safe to be around.

Basically, there are two kinds of radiation: non-ionizing and ionizing. There are some who put sound waves as a third kind, also called acoustic radiation, but it needs a medium (something to move through) like solids, water, or air, to move through, so I will talk about it another day.

Non-ionizing radiation is a low energy radiation that can move atoms and molecules but not break the bonds between them. We see and use it every day. Visible light, infrared heat, radio waves, and microwaves are common examples. There are part of the electromagnetic spectrum. We can use light waves (the Sun), or heat waves to keep us warm. Microwaves help us cook things quickly. They cause the molecules to speed up, giving them heat energy. The thing to remember is that none of these make something radioactive. There is nothing dangerous left over when they are used. You could even use the Sun’s radiation to grow a plant or get a sun tan. We couldn’t live without it.

Ionizing Radiation has so much energy that it can break atoms apart. These include x-rays, gamma rays and alpha and Beta particles. There are many good uses for these as long as we are careful. X-rays (they use a very low setting) can help us see a broken bone inside our body. It can be used to sterilize equipment. I can kill cancer that cannot be reached with surgery. I is also used to create electricity. Aircraft carriers and submarines now have nuclear reactors that heat up water into steam to run turbine generators and make lots of electricity. Ionizing radiation can be very dangerous if not used properly. That’s why you need to be very careful and pay attention to warning signs. If you see this symbol, make sure and ask an adult if the area is safe. 

 Well that’s all for today. In another post I may explain how we use nuclear fuel to make energy!

Love Papaw.