the fact of the matter - psd non-fiction magazine
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The Fact of the Matter
LA 1 and LA 3: Non-Fiction Magazine
5/21/2012
Authors: Aaron, Cameron, Camilla, Charlotte, Cole, Daniel, Eden, Gus, Jade, James, Jan, Joanna, Kiki, Lexi, Lia, Lily,
Maddie, Mia, Michael, Morgan, Natalie, Paavo, Petra, Sam, Sobia, Stella and Zack!
The Fact of the Matter . . . LA 1 and LA 3: Non-fiction magazine – Your Source for Fascination
First Edition, Published at Poughkeepsie Day School, Poughkeepsie, NY.
May 21, 2012
With many thanks to Ruthie Shaw, Gretchen Lytle and Kaitlin Torp
For Harriet, who has so much wonderful learning in front of her and so many wonderful people with whom to share it.
Contributors – In order of appearance
Aaron S. – The First Crusade
Cameron S. - What is a Bomber?
Camilla F. – The Early Life of a Koala
Charlotte C. – Meerkats
Cole T. – Norwegian Eating
Daniel V. – Squirrels
Eden G. – Mountain Gorillas
Gus B. – Two Great Soccer Players
Jade B. – How Dogs Communicate
James S. – The Battle of Gettysburg
Jan C. – Making Chocolate in a Factory
Joanna H. – Toy Dogs
Kiki S. – What Orangutans Eat
Lexi K. – Primates vs. Humans
Lia S. – Beagles vs. Coonhounds
Lily S. – History of Dogs
Maddie S. – Modern Dance
Mia V. – How to Train a Cat
Michael Y. – Baseball
Morgan M. – Black Cats
Natalie M. – Monkeys and Apes
Paavo H. - All about Galaxies
Petra P. – Arabian Horses
Sam H. - Electricity
Stella P. – Dogs
Sobia H. – Grooming Your Cat
Zack W. – From Squire to Knight
The First Crusade By Aaron S.
“Attack!” cried the knight commander and the
crusaders charged the oncoming Turks. If you’ve
never read about the first crusade than you
probably have no idea what this article is talking
about. Allow me to explain. It all started in 1096
when Pope Urban the 2nd learned that the Seljuk
Turks had taken over the Holy Land a.k.a.
Jerusalem. He decided to send out a crusade of
knights to reclaim it. It used to be that Christians
could visit Jerusalem but the Seljuk Turks refused
them that right. And so the crusade began.
There were in fact two crusades. The crusade
made up of knights and a crusade of peasants who
had taken it upon themselves to free the Holy Land
from the Turks. The knights took almost a year to
prepare all their stuff. The peasants were ready
almost immediately. Led by Peter the Hermit, the
Peasants crusade set off towards the Holy Land.
Those peasants weren’t the good guys you’d think
they were. For that matter neither were the knights.
The peasants attacked Jewish people along the
way and near the end of the crusade the knights
had a massacre, but more about that later. In the
summer of 1096 the peasants got to the city of
Constantinople. The emperor of Constantinople
was worried, unsurprisingly, when a bunch of loud
peasants came into his hall and demanded
passage. So he quickly had them ferried across the
Straits of Bosphorus into what is now Turkey (the
country, not the food.)
Now we get to something exciting. After traveling
across the Straits they went through the mountains.
While they were walking through a pass they were
AMBUSHED by a group of Turks and they were
nearly wiped out! Peter the Hermit and a few others
survived to tell the tale of how they were defeated
by the mighty Seljuk Turks.
A year after the Pope announced the start of the
crusade the knights set out, taking almost the exact
same route as the peasants. In Constantinople the
emperor had the Generals swear their loyalty to
him and ferried them across the Straits. They too
were ambushed but fought off the Turks and
continued on their way. After that they found and
captured the ancient city of Antioch. But the crazy
thing is the army of Turks laid a siege of Antioch
while the knights were still there! The knights were
terrified and thought they would die. That was when
a humble member of the crusade stepped forward.
The night before, he had a dream that the Holy
Lance was in Antioch. Half the crusaders searched
and they did find a lance. They believed that this
was in fact the Holy Lance. Empowered by their
discovery they decided to attack the Turks the very
next day.
The next day the crusaders won a huge victory.
They not only beat the Turks, they demolished
them. The Turkish army scattered and the
crusaders were not bothered by them again. They
finally made it to Jerusalem in 1099. I know it took
them a very long time, but they got there in the end.
Well I guess I wasn’t telling the truth. The Turks
poisoned all the water around Jerusalem. The
crusaders were not deterred by this act. They
continued anyway. The crusaders spent three days
marching around Jerusalem purifying themselves
before attacking. Then after another three days
they made it into the city. They then went on that
massacre I told you about earlier. They killed
almost everyone! It was really gruesome. The Pope
who had sent them died before the news reached
him that they had captured Jerusalem. His
successor made sure that Jerusalem stayed in
Christian hands.
I’m sure you know what happens after that. You
don’t! Well this is what happened. The crusaders
took over and Jerusalem was divided into four
principalities and each was ruled by a knight or
lord. After that two groups of knights formed. They
were called the Knights Templar and the
Hospitalles. The Templar made sure everyone was
safe and the Hospitalles cared for everyone who
was sick or homeless. In other words they thrived
there.
What is a Bomber? By Cameron S.
A bomber is a military plane. It flies high and at a
speed of 600-1,600 mph. A bomber can fly for over
12 hours in the air. .A bomber also carries troops.
HOW DOES A BOMBER WORK?
A bomber uses 4 jet engines to fly. A bomber uses
satellites and
computers to
help them fly.
They also can
refuel in mid-air.
It drops its
bombs when the bomb bay doors open.
THE HISTORY OF BOMBERS.
The first bomb was dropped in 1911.The pilots
used to drop the bombs from a open cockpit. They
used to be detectable by enemy radar. Now they
are mostly detectable by radar.
This is a plane that is
undetectable by radar. This
is a stealth fighter.
The Early Life of a Koala by Camilla F.
The baby koala is born! He is only two centimeters
long, about the size of a jellybean. She is a
marsupial*. Marsupials are mammals with pouches
they carry their joeys around in. Joeys are baby
marsupials. The joey only has two senses - smell
and touch. The joey stays in her mother’s pouch
keeping warm and drinking her mother’s milk for
about 6-8 months. He also eats something called
pap. Pap is a specialized form of his mother’s
droppings
which is soft
and runny.
Joeys eat
pap because
it develops
their
digestive
system so
the poison
from eucalyptus leaves won’t affect them. The joey
will start eating pap when it is about 4 months old.
Once the months have passed and the joey has
outgrown his pouch he rides on his mother’s back
(piggyback style) until he’s about a year old. When
her digestive system has developed she can start
to eat leaves. Koalas mainly eat eucalyptus leaves
which are poisonous to anybody other than koalas.
They also eat other leaves. Koalas will eat and
sleep in trees.
The koala will end up living to about 10-17 years
old. Normally female koalas live longer than male
koalas because of injuries from fights, dogs and
car accidents. Most people call them “Koala Bears”
but they are not bears,
they are marsupials. Most
people think that koalas are cute and cuddly but
they are actually fierce. They have sharp claws to
climb smooth trees and sharp teeth.
*marsupial:mar-soo-pe-ul
Meerkats
By Charlotte C.
Foxes, eagles, hawks, jackals and hyenas all hunt
meerkats. Meerkats blend into the ground, but
somehow their predators spot them. When a
predator doesn’t leave, the meerkats work together
to drive it away. The meerkats tightly clump
together and that’s called a mob. Each member of
the mob turns toward the predator. Next they stand
up tall and hold their tails up straight and stiff. They
puff up their hair and try to look big as possible.
The meerkats are clumped together so they look
like one big animal. After that the mob charges at
the predator and at the same time the meerkats
leap into the air. All of them then hiss and growl. If
the predator is still there they bite and scratch. One
meerkat can’t fight the predator. But working
together they can fight the predator off.
Norwegian Eating By Cole Turner
Have you ever wondered how food in Norway is
gathered? Food in Norway is gathered in many
different ways. Farmers in Norway grow rye, wheat
and barley. These grains are used to make many
types of bread. Farmers raise sheep, goats, pigs and
dairy cattle
which
provide
mutton, lamb
and pork as
well as the
cheeses that
Norwegians
enjoy. One Norwegian cheese is geitost which is made
from goat’s milk. Another kind of cheese is gammelost,
a tangy brown cheese that is made from soured skim
milk.
Fruits and vegetables are also grown in Norway. This
is weird since one third of Norway is above the arctic
circle. But the warm gulf stream currents and mild
southwesterly winds keep the temperature in Norway
high. Norway is cool and damp during the growing
season. Vegetables that grow well in this climate are
potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, peas and rutabagas.
Very often potatoes are part of the Norwegian dinner,
especially when they are boiled. At least twelve
different kinds of potatoes grow in Norway. Many kinds
of berries thrive in Norway like strawberries,
blueberries, lingonberries and cloudberries.
SQUIRRELS By Daniel V.
There are over 300 kinds of squirrels. Three of
them are ground squirrels, tree squirrels and flying
squirrels. The ground squirrels dig burrows in the
ground and can
survive most types
of weather. Some
tree squirrels build
nests like birds.
Some get homes
in trees. Even in the winter they still come down for
food. These two squirrels are most active during
the day.
Flying
squirrels
don’t
really fly.
They
have flaps of skin so they can glide across the sky.
The southern flying squirrels live usually live in
hollow trees. This squirrel is more active at night
time.
All squirrels
have strong
legs and
can leap
from tree
limb to tree
limb. They
also have teeth called incisors that are strong and
can crack a nut. Their whiskers can tell whether or
not the squirrel can fit. A squirrel has a memory
span for 20 minutes. That’s a lot of cool facts about
squirrels. Thank you for reading. What starts with "t" ends with "t" and is filled with "t"?
A teapot.
The Ways of Mountain Gorillas By Eden G.
While there are three different kinds of gorillas: the
western lowland gorilla, the eastern lowland gorilla
and the mountain gorilla, I find the mountain gorilla
most fascinating. The mountain gorilla has thicker
and longer fur than all the other kinds of gorillas.
They have longer and thicker fur because they live
in cooler temperatures than other gorillas.
Males weigh twice as much as females just like a
western lowland gorilla. Most adult male mountain
gorillas are called silverbacks because when they
get older their fur on their backs begins to have a
silver stripe down the center. Gorillas live in groups
however male gorillas leave the group at age
eleven . In each group there is always at least one
dominant silverback. The silverback decides what
the group eats and where.
When the mountain gorilla is most active is
between the hours of 6am and 6pm. They live in
altitudes ranging from 7,200-14,100 feet. The
mountain gorilla eats leaves, shoots and stems
from plants, bark, roots and flowers. The mountain
gorilla is very social and they keep long term
bonds. Gorillas are such fascinating creatures
because sometimes they can remind us about
ourselves and the more we learn about them the
more we learn about ourselves.
Two Great Soccer Players By Gus B.
Have you ever
wondered who
the two best
soccer players in
the world are?
Well, I’m not
going to just tell you who they are and why, but I’ll
also tell you about the leagues they play in. So get
ready to read some serious information. The two
best soccer players in the world right now are
Cristiano Ronaldo, and Lionel Messi.
Lionel Messi is the best player in the world.
Although he is only five-
foot-seven, he is the
best dribbler by far and
his shot is so good that
not even Ronaldo’s (see
below) shot is better.
Messi was born in
Rosario, Argentina.
Cristiano Ronaldo is the second best soccer player
in the world and was born in Santo Antonio,
Portugal. Cristiano Ronaldo is the second best
player in the world because of his amazing head
balling ability, his great passing skills, and his
lightning speed.
Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messie play in
Eastern Mountain Gorilla in rainforest of Uganda
Picture from Royalty Free Stock Photos
Spain's best league, La Liga, meaning The
League.
Ronaldo used to play in the English Premier
League (the EPL). The EPL is the most popular
League in the world.
How Dogs Communicate
By Jade B.
Dogs communicate in three different ways, by
sound, scent and body and facial expression. These
are some ways to know how your dog is feeling.
When a dog is nervous he has his tail between his
legs, he holds his head low, his body will be
shaking, and he will in a defensive posture. When a
dog is excited/happy he will hold his head high,
have perky ears, wag his tail high and bark. When
a dog is bored/sleepy he will lay around, have eyes
half opened, sigh and yawn.
When a dog wants to play, he will play bow, which
is when the front is down and the back is raised.
He will bark, and his tail will wag. Depending on
the size of the breed some dogs will bark very
deeply, like a St Bernard, while smaller dogs like a
Fox Terrier will bark with a much higher tone. When
a dog is aggressive his back raises, his ears are
pinned down, his tail wags low and he has an
offensive posture. He will have his lip curled and
teeth showing, and he will be snarling or growling.
When a dog wants something he stares at you,
paws at you,holds his ears up, and wags his tail
high. When a dog shows love he will lick you,
cuddle with you and lay on you. These are all
importantthis to know about how your dog
communicates.
The Battle of Gettysburg:
By James S.
Gettysburg was one of the main battles of the civil
war. One of the Confederate generals, Robert E.
Lee, marched with 75,000 troops to Gettysburg. At
first there was a small Union army until thousands
of Union army
reinforcements
arrived. One of
the Union
generals, General
Meade, came
with 88,000
troops. The Confederate were out-numbered in
Gettysburg. Lee ordered his men to attack the
middle of the Union battle line. Some of the
Confederates were killed and captured. The rest of
the Confederates retreated to the south. The battle
was 4 full days long. The Confederates messed
with the wrong Union army.
That retreat
was on the
Fourth of July,
1863.
Making Chocolate in a Factory By Jan C.
It took about four days for the Van Leer Chocolate
factory to make chocolate from a bag of cacao
beans. The cacao beans arrived from all over the
world - - all over the tropical region of the world
that is. Beans from Ghana may be mixed with
beans from Mexico, Brazil, Hawaii, Malaysia and
the Philippines to make a smooth, flavorful
chocolate. When the cacao beans arrived in their
burlap sacks weighing 200 pounds, they were
either forklifted right to the storage pallets in the
large cool warehouse or they were opened and
dumped into a rotating roasting oven for several
hours.
When the beans are roasted, they are deposited
onto a moving conveyor belt situated on top of a
powerful fan so their papery shells can be blown
off and caught in empty burlap sacks. Next, the
beans, now called nibs, traveled to a large grinding
machine which turns the cocoa beans into a thick
paste that looks a lot like peanut butter. This paste,
called cocoa mass or chocolate liquor, is quite oily
because the beans are rich with cocoa butter.
Some of the chocolate liquor heads to a huge
press. The press squeezes the paste so hard that
all the cocoa butter drips out and all that’s left
between the large round presses is a cake of cocoa powder. The company sells some of the
cocoa powder to bakers and hot chocolate makers
and some of the cocoa butter to skin care
companies, but the rest gets used to make their
delicious chocolate.
Workers add sugar and some flavorings such as
vanilla to chocolate liquor to make dark chocolate.
They add dried milk powder and more sugar and
vanilla if they are making milk chocolate. At this
point, the ingredients are all mixed together
according to recipes worked out in a laboratory,
and the first day is drawing to a close.
On the second day, the chocolate liquor, sugar and
other ingredients must be “refined”, mixed and
ground for about a half a day until the size of the
particles is so tiny that the chocolate will be creamy
and smooth. Then it’s time for a long blending
process called conching. Cheaper chocolates are
only conched for a few hours, but fine chocolate
spends at least 24 hours being conched.
During the
afternoon of
the fourth
day, the
chocolate is
sent
through
pipes to a large tempering kettle. The chocolate
must be handled at just the right temperatures so
that when it is poured into ten pound molds, it will
be as brown and shiny as we expect delicious
chocolate to be. Finally, the 89 degree chocolate is
deposited into molds and sent into a very cold
refrigerated room for about an hour. Conveyor
belts bring the bars to workers at the final station of
the assembly line. Workers at this station lift each
bar, place it in a clean plastic bag and place the
bar into a box. Five bars in a box means it’s time
for another worker to tape the box shut: green tape
for dark chocolate and yellow tape for milk
chocolate. These boxes travel by forklift truck to
cool storage warehouses until someone orders Bichon Frise Puppy
them.
I grew up learning and playing around Van Leer
Chocolate Corporation. It is closed now, and all the
employees have gone to work for other
businesses. I have fond memories of the smells,
the sounds and the signs posted to remind people
how to be safe. I loved climbing the greasy ladders
to peer into the giant tanks where the chocolate
was blended. I loved helping pack the ten pound
bars. But what made me feel special was that I
could say to people whose parents worked in
offices doing who knew what, “My daddy works in
a chocolate factory!”
Where are toy dogs from? By Joanna H.
All of the toy dogs are from around the world.
Italian greyhounds are from Italy. Mexican hairless
are from China. Papillons are from France. English
toy spaniels are from England. They are also
called King Charles spaniels. Chihuahuas are from
Mexico. Maltese are from Malta in the
Mediterranean sea. Pekingese are from China.
Pugs are from Europe. Affenpinschers are from
Germany. Bichon Frises are from the
Mediterranean Sea area. Bolognese are from Italy.
Chinese crested
dogs are from
China. English toy
terriers are from
England. Japanese
chin dogs are from
Japan. Lowchens
are from Europe. Pomeranians are from Germany
and last but not least the Yorkshire terrier is from
Yorkshire.
What Orangutans Eat By Kiki S.
As the seasons change orangutans can remember
where the trees are that might have ripe fruit so
they go to those trees more often than others.
Orangutans have
a very big
appetite and
sometimes they
will spend the
whole day
looking for food,
and eating. They
eat fruits, vegetables, nuts, bark, flowers, eggs,
and insects. They have very sharp teeth in the
front of their mouths for tearing and cutting food. In
the back of their mouths they have molars for
chewing food.
Primates vs. Humans By: Lexi K.
Have you ever wondered if primates are like us?
It's hard to think about, isn’t it? I mean an animal
and a human...alike? Well the truth is some way
they are, but in some ways they aren’t. Human
behavior starts in the brain and in our nervous
systems. The more complicated an animal’s brain
is the more
complicated
their
behavior will
be. Primates
are right
below us on
the food
chain and their life is complicated. So that means
primates (monkeys and apes) are a lot like humans
actually. All their senses are the same as ours. In
fact chimpanzees, monkeys, and apes are the only
animals that even approach our human abilities.
Chimpanzees actually make their own
tools and are very, very smart. Only primates come
up to our level and probably will be alive after us
when we get extinct. Yet if you think about it most
animals are very, very different. They hunt and we
buy, they fight others off as we invite most others
in, and they don't use toilets...!
Animals’ brains and bodies work much differently
than the way ours work. We are different in many
ways and also we’re highest on the food chain.
With chimpanzees being right below us they are
like brothers or sisters, except a little different. In
fact all primates
are like our
brothers or
sisters! But
compared to
animals like
jellyfish we are
much more
advanced. Considering that they have no brains!
So Humans are very much different than animals,
most of the time.
Beagles vs. Coonhounds By Lia S.
Do beagles and coonhounds have anything in
common? If you know what beagles or
coonhounds are, then good for you, but If you
don’t, then they’re dog breeds.
Beagles are small. They have floppy ears and a
loud bark. They are
solid, sturdy and very
gentle. There are two
types of beagles. One
of them is under 13
inches and the other is
higher with a maximum of 15 inches. They are
usually black, tan, and white. They were used for
scent hunting in the time of ancient Greeks. They
love being around people and other dogs. Beagles
are clever, quick, and curious.
Coonhounds are medium sized dogs. They are a
little like the bloodhound. Coonhounds love people
and being around them. They are working hounds,
and are capable of fighting through harsh winters
and hot summers. They are
very friendly, but very alert.
They have floppy ears and
long legs. Male coonhounds
can grow up to 27 inches and
females can grow to 25
inches. Coonhounds are very
loving, but they are serious when it comes to
hunting. If they chase a raccoon up to a tree and
they bark at it, it’s called
barking up.
Beagles do have a lot in
common with coonhounds,
like their floppy ears and
loving their family.
The author’s coonhound
How does a hedgehog play leap-frog? Very carefully! What happened to the cat that swallowed a ball of wool? She had mittens! What do you call a gorilla wearing ear-muffs? Anything you like! He can’t hear you!
Modern Dance By Maddie S.
Some choreographers wanted to make a dance
that expressed a lot of feeling and that’s how
modern dance came to be. A couple of
choreographers wanted to expand on ballet. Ballet
is limited and often doesn’t use the dancer’s back
to create movement. Ballet usually tells a story
through the dance and they walk on their toes,
unlike modern dance. Modern dance started a
hundred years ago. It is not as recently made as
hip-hop is but it’s always developing and people
keep on adding new things to it.
In the olden days ballet was very popular but after
a while a choreographer named Nijinsky created
something totally different off of the traditional
ballet. The dance was called The Rite Of Spring.
This dance was not appreciated among most
people when it was first performed in 1913 at
Paris. The Rite Of Spring was a fierce dance. It
was about a little girl who was being sacrificed to
the god of spring. There was an uproar! Some
people found it awful and some found it beautiful.
Loie Fuller was also a great dancer who also tried
something new. Ruth St. Denis and Isadora
Duncan both watched Loie Fuller perform in 1901.
They both became well known modern dancers.
Isadora Duncan did barefoot dancing and showed
freedom through her movements. She was
admired by a lot of younger dancers.
Other dancers and choreographers started doing
modern dance and opening up companies to teach
people how to do modern dance like Alvin Ailey,
Martha Graham, Katherine Dunham, Merce
Cunningham.....etc. Modern dance is now very
popular!
HOW TO TRAIN A CAT By Mia V.
Training cats is fun and a great way to spend some
quality time with your companion. Here’s how to
train your cat to sit, lie down, wave, give a high five
and sit up. But unlike dogs who do tricks to try to
please you, cats only do a trick if they get
something out of it, so make sure you have lots of
his favorite treats. With dogs, you need to do the
trick many times before the dog gets it. With cats,
you only need to do it a few times. This is because
cats have a part of their brain that when they do
something and they get a reward, they almost
instantly know that if they do it they will get a
reward.
If you want to train your cat it’s important that he
masters sit before you try to teach him any other
tricks. First, put him on a table. Have his favorite
treats in your hand. Make sure he’s focused on you
and the treats. Gently push down on his lower back
with one hand, and hold a treat an inch or two
above his head, say “Sit.” Then when he sits, say
“Good sit,” and immediately give him a treat. Do
this a few more times, then try without pressing his
lower back. Remember to reward him. Soon you
SIT
should be able to get your kitty to do sit any time,
even without a treat, but it’s still better to give him a
treat most of the time.
Lie down is a very
fun trick, but it’s a
little tricky to
teach. Have your
cat sit, take his
favorite treat and
put it in front of
him. Remember, not so close that he can’t get to it
but not so far that he needs to get up to get it,
about 4-6 inches away should be good. Then say,
“Lie down.” When he lies down give him the treat
and say, “Good lie down.” Practice a few more
times and your cat should get it.
LIE DOWN
The wave trick is very fun and pretty easy. Have
your cat sit, then hold a treat at eye level to your
cat. Say, “Wave,” and when he puts his paw up
give him the treat and say “Good wave.” He’ll get it
in about three tries. Then you can do it without a
treat, but you should still use treats or he won’t
want to do the trick anymore.
WAVE
First, have your cat sit. Hold a treat a little higher
than eye level to your cat, say “High five.” When he
paws your hand say “Good high five,” and give him
the treat.
HIGH FIVE
Have your cat sit. Then hold the treat above his
head about 3 or 4 inches. Say “Up.” When he puts
his two paws up, say “Good up,” and give him the
treat.
SIT UP
Baseball By Michael Y.
The old days The first official game of baseball was played in
1845. Baseball has grown to be more high-tech. In
the old days, the bases were just paths in the park.
Alexander Cartwright created the 90 foot base
paths. In the 1900’s, baseball uniforms had collars.
Also, their pants were more like shorts. For the
catcher, the mitt to catch the ball was like a pillow
covered in leather. The catcher’s masks were
covered in iron cast so they wouldn’t get hit by a ball
in the face. The old masks also didn’t cover their
throats. They didn’t wear helmets at that time, they
wore caps. Their baseball cleats only covered the
front and back of the bottom of their shoes. The
cleats were made of metal.
The modern days Now, baseball uniforms don’t have collars. The
cleats now cover the whole bottom of the shoes and
the pants are longer. A usual baseball field is 300+
feet long. A mound is 18 inches above the regular
baseball field.
Baseball teams In baseball, there are two teams of nine people
competing to win the game. There are also pinch
runners or hitters. That means some person is filling
in for the person who is getting substituted. This rule
has not changed ever in baseball.
End of season extras At the end of a baseball season, there are awards
given out. The Cy Young award goes to the best
pitcher in the National League and American League.
Cy Young was the greatest pitcher in baseball
history. The gold glove award goes to very good
defensive players. Lots of the gold glove awards are
given out. That is the history of baseball.
Black Cats By Morgan M.
Have you ever thought about why black cats are
thought to be bad luck? Well if you have keep
reading. Black cats are thought to be bad luck for
many superstitious reasons. One is that witches
could supposedly turn into black cats at night.
Another is that they were thought to be witches
pets. At some point Jews and Babylonians thought
that black cats could be related to serpents
because of their love of sitting near a fire. Once,
the French accused witches of worshiping the devil
in the form of a black cat.
The more realistic reason is that black cats have
reflective yellow eyes and at night their eyes have
the illusion of glowing. This is mainly a superstition
as said above but a few are based on history. Like
this one in 1969, there was a big baseball game
Mets vs. Cubs. Somehow a black cat came into
Shea stadium and circled the Cubs and then
disappeared. This event was followed by the Cubs’
defeat. Was this because of the black cat or were
the Cubs just really bad players?? We may never
know.
Monkeys and Apes By Natalie M.
When you went to the zoo did you see the monkey
enclosure? Apes are the closest relatives to
humans because they don’t have tails, and
monkey do. Some monkeys live in the trees, others
live on the
ground. The
monkeys that
live on the
ground need
extra protection
by people
because they are very weak against pray. Ground
monkeys travel in large groups.
There are almost 150 different kinds of monkeys.
They live in Africa, Asia and South America. South
America has the biggest number of threatened
monkeys. Some monkeys are endangered
because we are not protecting them from eagles,
big snakes, such as pythons and boa constrictors,
crocodiles, caimans sometimes even apes eat
small monkeys. Don’t just sit here reading this
article, do something!
THAT WAS YOUR DAILY REPORT ON MONKEYS.
The Japanese Macaque Monkey Macaques live in all parts of Japan, from the warm south to the arctic north. Infant macaques cling to their mother’s abdomen until they’re about a month old. Then they learn to
balance on her back. Young macaques roll snowballs – just for fun! Macaques learn by imitation. Sound familiar?
All about Galaxies By Paavo Hegley
Galaxies are big clusters of stars, planets and solar
systems. If you want to find galaxies with your own
eyes, it has to be dark! You want to have a
sweater, a red light, a telescope and you don’t
want to be near any lights (house and city). Then
you want to look up at the stars and enjoy yourself!
You want to look at whatever you want in the night
sky. If you see a bright light in the sky you have
found a galaxy! There are many other ways to find
galaxies. Scientist use telescopes sometimes.
Sometimes the galaxies give off radio signals so
scientists X-RAY the galaxies. Even though our
galaxy is spiral doesn’t mean that all galaxies are
spiral, some are ball shaped. Our galaxy is one of
the smallest we know. Andromeda is our
neighboring galaxy. Andromeda is the biggest
galaxy known to man.
One day (in about a million years) the Milky Way
and Andromeda will collide and make “Milkamida.”
There are also clusters of galaxies. The Milky Way
and Andromeda are a part of one big cluster. Who
knows what’s going to happen when Andromeda
going to smash into us, will we die or not die?
That’s a question that no one could answer.
Here is a picture of colliding galaxies:
Arabian Horses By Petra P.
Arabian horses are one of the oldest kinds of
horses. They have a very narrow nose and their
faces have a good bone structure. They’re very
strong. They are often a pretty big horse, usually
around 61 inches tall. They’re very friendly horses
and known to be gentle and kind. They are very
good with kids. They have black skin, but black is
not a very common color for their hair. It’s more
common to see bay and chestnut colored
Arabians. Their legs are very strong and muscular.
They are loyal and they follow people well. Many
people have liked to work with Arabians for
thousands of years.
ELECTRICITY
By Sam H.
What do you call excited electrons? That’s right,
electricity. There are different kinds of electricity.
Static electricity, when electrons are being
pulled from one surface to another one. This
happens when you take off a sweater or
sometimes when you rub your sock on a
carpet. There is also a type of electricity
called an electrical current, which is when
there is a flow of electrons in a conductor. A
another type of electricity is an electrical
circuit. That’s when there is an energy source,
energy pathway and energy receiver. The source
will send energy which will travel through the
pathway to the receiver, like a battery giving
energy to a lamp through a wire. Like how there is
electricity in a wall socket the socket carries
electricity. There are many more examples of
electricity, but those are the main types of
electricity.
NOTE: When electricity flows in an object a magnetic field is created around the object.
GLOSSARY Conductor.................A solid with a path inside it. Like a tube. Energy Source..............An object that holds energy inside it. Energy Pathway............Takes energy and sends it to something else. Energy Receiver.................Receives energy from an energy source. Circuit........................A bunch of conductors together making a closed path which can hold electricity inside of it. Electron..............A stable kind of particle that has a charge of negative power, found in all atoms, which is the main particle for carrying electricity in solids.
Dogs By Stella P.
Have you ever wondered how a wolf evolved to a
dog? Well it’s simple! But let’s start from 4,000
years ago. Before we start, remember this: wolves
look just like dogs, except wolves are not tamed.
They were not pets. They were always in the woods
hunting for animals to eat until one day people
started to take in wolves to make them help them
with hunting and pulling things. After a while people
started to think what a good pet wolves could be.
So, people tamed the wolves and gave them some
of their own food. Eventually the wolves started to
change because of being in a different habitat. They
were fed differently and they were tamed. Also the
people who tamed wolves started to breed them so
they could make them stronger, better hunters or
good with kids. So that’s how they started to evolve.
Hey! Don’t just think, “Dogs just became dogs. The
end.” Nope! Dogs still use the same emotions as
wolves, but maybe more, proper. So if you have a
dog try to see how he or she acts like a wolf. Then
see how your dog acts independently. Some
examples of wolf-like behavior: someone that
neither your dog nor you knows crosses your path,
your dog will start to bark. If a dog is scared or
sorry it will put its tail between its legs or it will turn
on its back and show its stomach. If a dog sees an
animal like a squirrel it will try to chase after it. But
when a dog acts independently, most of them
won’t howl at the moon, most domesticated dogs
don’t like to stay on high places (wolves always like
to be on high places like a plateau or an
outcropping) and last, dogs don’t fight to be a
leader of a human pack. Most dogs these days are
not in packs or colonies.
It’s a Dog’s Life! During the Middle Ages, Great Danes and Mastiffs were sometimes suited with armor and spiked collars to enter a battle or to defend supply caravans
Grooming Cats
By Sobia H. Meow! Meow! I’m feeling dirty! Cats should
always be groomed but, do you know how to
groom them? Well, if you don’t, then here is how. You will need a brush, a comb, a pair cat clippers
and a toothbrush. First, to make sure your kitten is
calm and used to being groomed, stroke it gently.
Next, take your comb and comb your cat. By doing
this you’re getting the knots and the tangles out in
their hair. Once you’ve done that, brush your cat so
that you can get all the dead hair out of the
way.After that, take your pair of cat clippers and
stroke your cat with the clippers making sure it
doesn’t hurt. Then, gently squeeze your cat’s paw
and cut the nails.
Later, take the toothbrush and wash out all the
messy stuff. When that’s done open your cat’s
mouth and make sure
that its mouth is clean
and there are no
broken teeth. Lastly,
put some cat
toothpaste on your
toothbrush and rub it
on your cat’s mouth. Soon it will open it’s mouth
and you can brush its teeth. Well, that wasn’t so
hard, was it?
Did you know? • A litter of kittens is called a kindle, and a group
of cats is called a clowder. • A cat's IQ is only surpassed by that of monkeys
and chimps in the world of animals. • Cats are the only animals that purr. They can
purr at around 26 cycles per second, which is the same frequency as an idling diesel engine.
From Squire to Knight By Zack W.
Squires trained for years before they became
knights. When rich boys reached the age of seven
they could be a page and go to a school where
they would study maps and learn to read and write.
After school, when they were about 12 or 13 years
old, the page was apprenticed to a knight and was
called a squire. He would learn how to dress the
knight. Then the squire would learn how to use a
sword and a lance. He used a wooden sword with
a heavy rock attached to the hilt so he could get
used to the weight. He and his knight dueled
together when they weren’t in battle.
The squire also got training from actual battles.
When a squire was thought to have learned the
right skills he would kneel before his king to be
knighted. The king would touch each shoulder with
his sword. Or, in rare cases, he was dubbed by the
knight he served after a brave feat on the
battlefield.
This is a knight charging into battle on his horse.
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