Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2025 i Brainspace

YOU WILL NEED: • 5 dice • 2 or more players • paper and pencils for each player • a timer (optional) OBJECT OF THE GAME: Get as close to the target number as possible HOW TO WIN: Lowest score takes all RULES: 1. Pick a leader. This changes for each round. The leader calls out a target number between 33 and 99, then rolls the 5 dice. 2. If everyone is comfortable with a timer, start it to begin a round! (We recommend no less than 2 minutes and no more than 5 minutes per round.) 3. All numbers on the dice must be used in the equation to reach the target number. You can use multiplication, addition, subtraction and division. Parentheses are allowed. For example: • 34 is…

Matriarchy is a term used to describe a social system governed by a female. Roughly 10% of mammal species that live in social groups are led by a dominant female (matriarch). Some female leaders govern by force and aggression, while others lead by teaching and transferring knowledge. Guess whether the matriarchs in groups of naked mole-rats, ring-tailed lemurs, clownfish and African savanna elephants lead by force or by teaching. Continue reading to see if you guessed correctly! The queen’s spine gets longer each time she is pregnant. This lengthening allows her body to hold larger litter sizes as she ages. A young queen usually delivers a litter of 10 babies, while an older queen can have up to 30 babies NAKED MOLE-RATS These rodents live underground in groups as large as…

On the surface, the diatom may appear to be a relatively simple creature. But this single-celled organism has fascinated scientists for hundreds of years and may very well be responsible for the breath you are taking right now! When diatoms were discovered in 1702, they were thought to be tiny animals, because the geometrically shaped organisms were observed swimming freely within their environment. Biologists eventually concluded that they were plants, because they performed photosynthesis. We now know that diatoms are single-celled algae and are found in oceans, lakes, waterways and soils throughout the world. Their population numbers in the trillions and they can even be found in the aquarium in your home. Diatoms produce between 20 and 40 percent of the air we breathe FUN FACT: Admired for their beauty,…

We might think a bath or shower should be a private event, but the recent excavation of an elaborate bathhouse in Pompeii shows that for wealthy ancient Romans, bathing was also a social activity. Are you picturing one small room? Forget that! This bathhouse, which is part of a very large, grand house, had 4 separate rooms and was big enough to host up to 30 guests. Only the richest people in Pompeii had their own bath complex; most people used public bathhouses. A FOUR-ROOM BATH Guests would first undress in a change room with red walls and a marble mosaic floor. Then they would go to the hot room to take a dip in a hot bath and lounge in the sauna-like heat. Next came the warm room. Here…

Who are some of the most useful critters on the planet? Pollinator insects, that’s who. They carry pollen on their bodies and move it between flowers. Without this pollination, ¾ of the world’s flowering plants and almost 80% of the world’s food crops wouldn’t be able to set fruit or reproduce. But insects, including pollinators, are declining in number. If you have a garden or a balcony with a planter box, you can help. Just plant pollinator-friendly flowers! Early spring is the perfect time for your family to plan a little pollinator paradise. PICK ONE FROM HERE Plants from the mint family: wild bergamot, Virginia mountain mint, anise hyssop. AND ONE FROM HERE Plants from the pea family: false indigo, red clover. Other beautiful native pollinator plants include wild columbine,…

When the Earth was young, it was a hot mess. The ground was molten lava and volcanic eruptions filled the air with poisonous gases such as hydrogen sulfide, methane and carbon dioxide. The air was so thick that it acted like a blanket, raising the temperature to 230ºC (446°F) and completely blocking out the sun. Meteors, small and large, rained down constantly from space, splashing up lava and depositing hot metals onto the Earth. One of these meteors, called Theia, was unusually large. It was about the size of Mars, on a fateful collision course with young Earth. When it smashed into the Earth, it knocked a huge chunk of our planet right into space. But Theia didn’t leave a crater because the Earth was still half-molten, and the lava…

1 We are going to make a very simple chase game called “Taco Tuesday.” You will have two “sprites” (aka characters): your main player and the taco you are trying to catch! In the blue Sprites menu, drag the “set my sprite” block into the “on start” block already on your workspace to create your player character. Click the grey oval to open up the sprite editor and select “gallery” to find a player sprite you like! Click “done” and your main character should appear in the middle of your screen. 2 In the orange Controller menu, drag in a “move mySprite with buttons” block and place it after the first block we created. This will allow us to move our player! Go back to the Blue sprites menu and…

In the past, women interested in science did not have an easy road! In some cases, science education was not considered “suitable” for women. Sometimes it was hard for them to get hired or publish their findings. Despite these odds, there have been many females throughout history who made huge contributions to science. Take this quiz, and use the Zappar app to scan each photo for the answers and learn more about these five science superstars. ASTRONOMY 1. JOCELYN BELL BURNELL Burnell was a graduate student when she discovered the existence of a dense, rapidly spinning neutron star. What is this kind of star called? BIOCHEMISTRY 2. ROSALIND FRANKLIN Franklin used a technique called X-ray crystallography to take the very first photograph of this “mystery molecule” that carries the genetic…

Unless you're a malacologist (a scientist who studies mollusks), it is unlikely you think much about clams. And to be fair, they aren’t thinking much about you because they have no brains! Most of them simply live their lives buried beneath the sand and silt of both freshwater and saltwater rivers, lakes and oceans. In Poland, however, there are eight types of clams that have been recruited to protect the citizens of Poznań. These small but mighty heroes make sure that the drinking water pumped through the city’s pipes is clean and safe enough to drink. Poznań’s main water source is the Warta River, a waterway that winds its way through areas where many people live, and much industry takes place. The high risk of pollution getting into the river…

BEESWAX FOOD WRAP YOU’LL NEED: • Beeswax (pellets) • 100% cotton fabric (size can vary) • Scissors • Medium-sized paintbrush • Parchment paper • Baking sheet • Ruler 1. Choose what size beeswax food wraps you’d like to make. We recommend: a. Small (15 × 20 cm or 6 × 8 in): perfect for single pieces of fruit or other small snacks b. Medium (25 × 30 cm or 10 × 12 in): will cover a bowl or a block of cheese c. Large (40 × 40 cm or 16 × 16 in): will cover a large bowl or a sandwich 2. Cut your fabric to size. Draw a line using a ruler to keep things straight. 3. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). 4. Line your baking sheet with…

When you get sick, you probably go to the doctor and take medicine. But what would you do if you were a monkey, a parrot, or a bee? Though animals in the wild may not have doctors and pharmacies, the world around them is full of medicine. Here are some of the things animals do to fight illness with nature. POLLEN PILLS North American bumblebees often get sick from parasites. One of these, a microscopic organism called Crithidia bombi, infects the bee’s digestive system. This parasite makes it hard for the bee to collect food from flowers, so many infected bees don't survive. Luckily, bees have a superfood that prevents severe Crithidia infections: sunflower pollen! Many plants in the sunflower family have pollen grains covered with a spiky shell. These…

TIN CAN LANTERNS This DIY activity is sure to light up any mom or dad’s life. All you’ll need is a washed tin can of any size, a piece of paper, tape, hammer and a nail. Draw a pattern onto a piece of paper using a series of dots. Tape the paper to the can, then use the hammer and nail to puncture holes where you’ve drawn the dots. If you want to add an extra step, paint your can a bright colour before you start. Your lantern will brighten up any balcony or backyard when you place a candle inside. WIND CHIMES You’d be amazed at how many household items make pretty sounds. String together cutlery, tin cans, keys or other discarded metal objects to make a wind chime.…

IT GREW IN THE SEWERS OF LONDON, ENGLAND. It smelled like a rotting corpse. And it was huge and as heavy as a blue whale: 130 tonnes (286,600 pounds) and 250 metres (820 feet) long! It sounds like something from a horror movie, and it was horrific alright. But it wasn’t some alien/mutant creature lurking in the pipes – it was a fatberg. And there are lots more of them. In fact, fatbergs are a costly problem for municipal sewage systems everywhere. What is a Fatberg? A fatberg forms from things people shouldn’t (but do) flush down the toilet (such as baby wipes and paper towels) and wash down the drain (grease and oil). The wipes, which don’t disintegrate like toilet paper, can snag on a rough place or bend…

When we think of the many impressive functions our bodies perform each day, saliva (spit) production probably doesn’t come to mind. Yet without saliva, the simple act of swallowing would be nearly impossible. Let’s learn more about this powerful (and underappreciated) fluid. How DO WE PRODUCE SALIVA? Three major pairs of salivary glands produce saliva, which enters our mouth through small openings called ducts. SUBLINGUAL GLANDS are deep in the floor of our mouth on either side of our tongue. Saliva from these glands enters our mouth through many tiny ducts. SUBMANDIBULAR GLANDS are under our jaw, and the saliva they produce enters our mouth through ducts below our tongue. PAROTID GLANDS are the largest salivary glands and are in front of our ears. The saliva produced here enters our…

During the time of the ancient Roman Empire, Pompeii was a wealthy town near the present-day city of Naples, Italy. The city and its citizens thrived until the year 79 of the common era (CE), when the volcano Mount Vesuvius erupted, burying the entire city in hot volcanic ash. The ash preserved the city until the first archeologists began excavating it in the mid1700s. Since then, about 2/3 of the city has been uncovered, giving us a rare picture of life in ancient Rome. DAY OF DISASTER The eruption of Mount Vesuvius lasted for 2 days. The first 12 to 18 hours brought pumice rain – cinders and small rocks made of hardened lava. Most of the 20,000 Pompeiians must have escaped during this phase, since only about 2,000 bodies…

TASSELLED WOBBEGONG SHARK (Eucrossorhinus dasypogon) eu = good krossoi = tassel rhinos = nose dasys = hairy pogon = beard Meaning: GOOD TASSEL HAIRY BEARD NOSE! BLACKTIP REEF SHARK (Carcharhinus melanopterus) karcharos = sharp rhinos = nose melas = black pteron = wing Meaning: SHARP NOSE BLACK WING! HORN SHARK (Heterodontus francisci) hetero= different dont= teeth francisci= San Francisco Meaning: SAN FRANCISCO DIFFERENT TEETH! FUN FACT The characteristic “beard” and colouration of Tasselled Wobbegong allow it to camouflage into coral reefs. It then lies in wait to ambush prey that comes along. Etymology is the study of word origins. Marine ecologist Leo Chan Gaskins enjoys breaking a name down into the components of the Latin word to better understand its meaning. Sometimes the meanings are spot on, describing the shark…