D4K Top 10 Questions 2007-2008

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Rocks and Minerals (May 2008)

Thanks to Scott Hughes, Department of Geosciences, Idaho State University; and Virginia Gillerman, Idaho Geological Survey for their answers

* How many different kinds of rocks are there?  Show answer

There are probably at least a couple thousand different kinds of rocks, but every one is unique. Rock is composed of a mixture of minerals, and if you've looked around outdoors you might even notice the granite in central Idaho looks a little different from one place to the next. It is estimated that 300 names help sort rocks into categories between sedimentary-, igneous-, and metamorphic-type rocks. (From Caleb in Mrs. Hooper's class at Gooding Elementary)  Hide

* What makes certain rocks valuable?  Show answer

Rocks are usually valuable either for their beauty and their decorative value, or else for a valuable element that they contain. Gold is the one that you might be thinking of, but many times we get valuable things from the earth that we may not appreciate, such as certain rocks that are used in jet engines and for lubricants and are important ingredients in many specialty steels. And so it's the use of something, whether it is sand or gravel, or gold, that makes it valuable. (From Tessa in Mrs. McCamish-Cameron's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary School)  Hide

* Why are rocks so hard?  Show answer

Rocks are hard because of the way their atoms are bound together. For example, you might have a rock that's made up of a mineral that has carbon. Carbon is one of those elements that, if it's bound a certain way, it makes a very soft mineral called graphite. But if it's bound a different way it can be so hard it becomes the hardest mineral known to humans, which is called diamond. Rocks are also hard as a result of the minerals they contain and how those minerals are bound together. For example, granite can be very hard because its minerals are intergrown and locking very tightly. Whereas a rock like sandstone that might not have its minerals packed together too tightly could be very soft. (From Rachel in Mrs. Whitesell's class at Gooding Elementary)  Hide

* Can diamonds melt?  Show answer

Yes, they could, if you could get it hot enough. While we are not sure offhand what the melting temperature of diamond is, any substance has a solid, a liquid, and a gaseous form. And that's essentially what melting is, going from the solid to the liquid. On the other hand, if a diamond were melted, it would be worthless after that because it would just be a blob of carbon liquid, and there's no way to make it back into a diamond, that's for sure. (From Taylor in Mrs. Gris's class at Horizon Elementary School)  Hide

* If diamonds are the strongest rock, what is the second strongest?  Show answer

Diamond is a mineral. And so the strong - the hardest - mineral is diamond. The next hardest one would be corundum. Well-known varieties of that stone would include the gem ruby, which is of course red, and emeralds, which are green. There is basic non-gem quality corundum, which is maybe not very common but not an uncommon constituent of typical metamorphic rocks like we have in northern Idaho. And it has a hardness of nine on what's called the Moh's (rhymes with toes) Scale of Hardness, which is the most common method used to rank gemstones and minerals according to hardness from 1-10. (From Kyle in Mrs. Gris's class at Horizon Elementary School)  Hide

* Why are some lava rocks red and others black?  Show answer

When lavas flow, like the lava flows one might see in Hawaii, they might be red because they're hot and glowing, but as the lava cools, the lava will become a black or an orange, or a red or brown, depending on the oxidation state. Iron, for instance, if you take your dad's hammer and you throw it out in the yard and leave it out in the rain and so forth, it gets rusty and it takes on a different color than the nice shiny steel when he brought it home from the hardware store. When lava cools, some of the gasses react with the iron in the lava to change the state of oxidation of that iron and so much of it comes out red. (From Jesse, a homeschooler in Filer)  Hide

* What is the biggest gem in the world?  Show answer

There are some gems that are quite large. The Hope Diamond is the most famous. It is a couple hundred karats cut, but of course it was probably several, maybe a couple of thousand, karats before it was cut and facetted into a cut gemstone. On the other hand, there are quartz crystals in museums that are almost gem quality, and some of those you could get one that was a foot long, and six or eight inches across. Some of the largest gemstone crystals come from Brazil, and you may have seen some of those in rock stores or in a museum. (From Montana in Mrs. Hammond's class at Camelot Elementary School in Lewiston)  Hide

* How do rocks form in the ocean?  Show answer

In the ocean rocks can form in two general ways. They can be what we call chemical precipitates, like a limestone, that might result from crystallization from dissolved carbonate parcels - particles that collect together, and then drop to the bottom of the ocean and form as layers of limestone. The other way, which is probably easier to see, is, for example, on a beach where you have a sandy beach, and over time if the ocean sort of retreats, that sand layer will get buried by other layers of sediment, and eventually over millions of years compressed into what could be a very hard rock. In the Boise foothills we have sandstone that was probably a lakefront beach at one time, and we can have finer grain sedimentary units as well. (From Sebastian in Mrs. Colburn's class at Endeavor Elementary School in Nampa)  Hide

* How do rocks get their shape?  Show answer

Rocks are formed by three different types of processes, and depending on the process, a rock will have properties making it softer in one direction, and harder in another direction. Or it might have some texture which we call foliated or lineated or layered, etc. As rocks break, they break along planes of weakness, so during the weathering process, for example "mechanical" weathering, the rocks are broken up and the shape depends on how strong they are in various directions. On the other hand, a rock may be washed over with water and eroded down so the surface of that rock might be changed just due to the erosion. It all depends on the property of the rock itself and how strong it is in one direction versus another. (From Joshua, a homeschooler in Boise)  Hide

* How do you find the age of a rock?  Show answer

There are two main ways geologists determine the age of a rock. The first way, of course, is with fossils. Fossils represent old animals or plants that evolved in certain directions, and paleontologists have studied that over the years and determined what the relative ages of those plants and animals are. More recently scientists have used radiometric age dating of rocks - that's a consequence of the decay of certain unstable isotopes of some elements. Rocks decay at a uniform consistent rate. By measuring certain isotopes within the rock and doing some mathematics you can calculate an age of the rock. So like we think the earth is about 4.5 billion years old, we can determine ages of rocks that are as young as 50,000 years on the Snake River Plain, for example. (From Alexandra, a homeschooler in Boise)  Hide

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Barbara Morgan (Apr 2008)

Thanks to Barbara Morgan, NASA Education Mission Specialist and former Idaho teacher for their answers

* What made you want to go into space, especially with all the risks?  Show answer

That's a great question. And I like you asking about risks. Because I think that risk-taking is actually an important part of life if you take the right risks. I know as kids you oftentimes see people taking risks for all the wrong reasons. But for me I felt it was really important. There's so much that we don't know about our world. And space is our world. Our earth is just a small part of a very large universe. And to be able to be a lifelong learner and to help make the world a better place by exploring and learning and discovering and sharing, I just felt it was an important thing to do. (From Mrs. Hooper's class at Gooding Elementary School)  Hide

* What was liftoff like?  Show answer

Liftoff is tremendous. It's kind of funny. Actually it's not funny, it's amazing. But first of all you sit up in your bulky space suit that protects you, that's like a pressure suit. And you strap into the orbiter. And you're lying on your back. You strap in. You've got technicians that help strap you in. You're lying on your back for about two hours while the ground team is getting the rest of the orbiter ready to go. And once it's time to launch, you go from zero miles an hour to 17,500 miles per hour in only 8 minutes. So it's very, very, very fast. The first thing that happens is the three main engines light, and then the two solid rocket boosters light. And you're on the solid rocket boosters and those three main engines for about three minutes. During that time it is very loud with a lot of vibration and shaking and you're getting more and more pressure on your chest. And you really feel the pushing. And then after three minutes when all the fuel is gone in those solid rocket boosters, they're ejected. They fall back to earth. At that point you're still going faster and faster and faster to get to five miles every second for the next eight minutes. The ride is really smooth and very quiet when you're only on the three main engines. Somebody told me, actually several people told me before I launched, for many years, that it would feel like you have about a two ton gorilla jumping up and down on your chest and it would get hard to breathe. It got a little bit hard to breathe and you did feel the pressure on your chest. But it's nothing you couldn't handle yourself. The thing that I really felt more than anything, actually two things, were that I felt the extreme thrust, real pushing. You could feel the orbiter pushing against your back and it almost fell like it could push right through you. The other thing I felt was extreme happiness. I remember having an ear to ear grin. And I was just so happy we were finally launching after this great hard work and we were going to get to accomplish our mission. And more than anything I knew in a couple of days we would be at our international space station. (From Caleb, a homeschooler in Meridian)  Hide

* What does space food taste like?  Show answer

There's a lot of variety in space food and much of it is dehydrated. The reason it is dehydrated is that water weighs a lot. And if we took all the food and all the water that we need and if all the food already had all the water in it, it would be so heavy that it would be very difficult to get off the planet and also be able to take all the science equipment and the pieces for the international space station. So we wouldn't be able to take all the stuff that we need to do our work. It turns out that the fuel cells on our space shuttle that provide our electricity and our energy, the byproduct of the way the fuel cells work is water. So we actually use recycled water. And we take our dehydrated food up to our little kitchen or little galley, we stick it up to a special little needle, then we turn a dial and that dispenses the water into the dehydrated food. Then we mush it around a little bit, let it sit for about 15 minutes, then we'll put it inside the oven to keep it warm and use scissors, cut it open and eat it. And there's a lot of variety. One of my crew's favorite foods was shrimp cocktail. My own particular favorite food was beef stroganoff. It was nice and spicy and the noodles tasted delicious and so did the meat. We take tortillas and they are wonderful to have. They don't crumble very much like bread does. And you can spread scrambled eggs on them and make yourself a breakfast burrito or you can spread cheese or peanut butter and have a peanut butter (instead of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich) and jelly tortilla. I think everybody's favorite foods are things like the M&M's. They're things you can kind of play with. I mean, if your friend is over in a different part of the shuttle or space station and they're a little bit hungry you can say, "You want a snack?" If they say yes you can shoot them an M&M and then their mouth becomes a basketball hoop. (From Thane at Hayden Meadows Elementary School)  Hide

* What was being in space like?  Show answer

There are so many different aspects to being in space. First of all, what I loved most about it is actually the work. The work was really, really fun. Manipulating and flying, what we call the robotic arm, is math in action and geometry in action. That was a lot of fun to do. To be able to be a part of a team and a great team and to be able to help build this wonderful laboratory in space, our international space station, it's just a very satisfying job. Just like teaching in the classroom is a very satisfying job. And then there are things like floating. Floating is interesting. At first it's pretty challenging to get used to because everything is everywhere. And you have to work really hard to keep track of your stuff and keep track of your own body and making sure that you're not being too jerky so that you can smoothly move through the station without bumping things or bumping your crewmates. It's a challenge. And looking out at our beautiful planet and out at our universe through that blackness of space is a real treat to get to be able to do that. And if I can just mention one thing - if you go to the NASA website at www.nasa.gov, you can view each of the videos. (From the students at Timberline Ridge Prep School in Clark Fork)  Hide

* How did you stick with the mission even after the Challenger accident?  Show answer

I stuck with this because I felt it was very important to our country, to our world, and especially to our young people like you. When the Challenger happened we had kids all over the country just like you looking at adults and watching to see what adults do in a horrible, horrible situation. And you know, bad things happen in our lives. And you just have to kind of decide if it is worth it or not. And to me, learning and kids and our future are very, very important. And I felt it was really important for our space program to keep going into the future and to not let bad things stop us. And it's just like I know your teachers are working with you at school. I know in our classroom (and I'm sure it's exactly the same in yours), you have challenges come at you all the time and roadblocks that come in your way that make it really hard. But if you just say, "It's too hard, it's terrible, I'm just going to quit," you won't be prepared in your future for these wonderful opportunities that come your way. But if you take those challenges and say, "I know it's really hard but I'm going to keep working at it, I'm going to keep those doors open and push those roadblocks out of the way," you can go into the future and be able to do anything. That's what all of us teachers want for you and that's why we do things like that as adults as well. (From Crimson in Mr. Houchin's class at John Brown Elementary in Rathdrum)  Hide

* Did you bring any plants or seeds into space to experiment with?  Show answer

We took a lot of plant seeds with us and we took them up for all of you. We took up 10 million basil seeds. And there's a picture of it online at the NASA website. We'll make sure your teachers have that information. Because we wanted you to actually see that these were in space and they were floating with us. They were wrapped in a triple containment, so three layers of this very heavy, thick kind of plastic material. The reason we took these up is we wanted to do an education activity, not for us, but what you could do on the ground. So we took these seeds and they flew in space. They've come back to earth. Park Seed Company who donated all these seeds has packaged them up. And they're ready and they're being distributed to you. You go online to the NASA website and we'll make sure your teachers have that information at www.nasa.gov. And your school can sign up for these seeds. Here's what we want you to think about with them. You'll get a package of both the seeds that flew and the seeds just like them that stayed on the ground so you can do some scientific experiments and discover with them. Right now NASA is working on the spacecraft that will get us back to the moon. But there are so many big questions that need to be answered for explorers to be able to remain on the moon for a long period of time. One of those many questions is, "How do you feed people on the moon?" With the moon's environment - and I hope you know what the moon's environment is like, and if not I hope you'll study it - but with the moon's environment, how are you going to feed people? So our challenge to you is to design a growth chamber. Get together with a team of students and design a growth chamber for the Moon or for Mars or even for your own backyard. (From Taylor, a homeschooler in Nampa)  Hide

* What kind of science do you study while you're in space?  Show answer

Our mission was a construction mission. So more than anything we were really a construction crew and we built things. Inside the International Space Station we're doing lots of science experiments. We did have a few we conducted on the shuttle but not very many. Our job was to build the station. Most of the science that we're doing on the International Space Station is to learn about the human body and how it acts in space and what it needs, especially as we go for a long duration, like when we're living on the moon for a long period of time to explore there or even going as far as Mars. Every morning I had to get up and put a wad of cotton in my mouth. We did a spit wad and we collected our saliva and put it in a special container and brought all those home back to the scientists on the ground. And for that particular experiment, what they're studying is viruses and if they become activated in your body when you're out in space. (From Gilbert in Mrs. Freeland's class at West Park Elementary in Moscow)  Hide

* Do kids get to go to space?  Show answer

Right now kids don't get to physically go into space but they get to do a lot with the space program and do a lot of the same things we get to do, only they do it on the ground. There are also places where you can go and have a simulated space flight just like we have in orbit. The only difference is you won't quite be floating. For example, the Challenger Center for Space Science Education has centers where kids can go on "missions." They do exactly the kinds of things that we do when we're on the international space station. (From Mrs. Freeland's class at West Park Elementary in Moscow)  Hide

* What was the most beautiful thing you saw while you were in space?  Show answer

Looking out at the vacuum of space was amazing. I've seen hundreds of photographs that we've taken from space and I've seen how beautiful it is firsthand, especially when you're going over the ocean with that bright, bright blue with all the clouds and looking out at the blackness of space. The thing that surprised me the most, and it's really amazing, is that color of black. And even in all of those photographs it's not the same. And I've never seen the color black from space anywhere here on earth. You can see through it and you see hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of pinpoints of light (stars). And they look like they're just hung there on invisible strings. I really loved looking down at our earth. The land is beautiful, the ocean is beautiful. I saw thunderstorms at night. When one flash of lightning would go off all these other flashes of lightning and all the other thunderstorms would trigger and go off and it was like this big fireworks show going on. When the sun first comes up in the morning and you see these beautiful sunrises, it starts out with a really thin blue line and you see the curvature of the earth. (From Marlee in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary School)  Hide

* How do you go to the bathroom in space?  Show answer

Very carefully! There's a potty, a potty room, a toilet onboard both the space station and the space shuttle. For your liquid waste there's a big hose that you put a funnel on (one shaped for a male and one for a female) and then you sit on it (there's a hole in it). You don't want to float off (because everything floats), so your solid waste goes down the hole. There's no gravity pulling it down so this toilet has a fan system that basically sucks everything away. The liquid waste is contained in a tank with other liquid waste from other parts of the shuttle or the station, and then it gets ejected overboard and turns into little icicles. The solid waste gets exposed to the vacuum of space. So it basically is freeze-dried and brought back down to earth and disposed of. To keep from floating away while you're doing your business there are handle bars and foot restraints that you can hold on to. The handle bars squeeze down on top of your thighs to hold you down and in place. (From Rye in Mrs. Green's class at Irving Elementary School)  Hide

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Amphibians (Mar 2008)

Thanks to Adare Evans, Education Specialist, Idaho Department of Fish and Game; and Eric Leitzinger, Biologist, Idaho Department of Fish and Game for their answers

* What is the difference between a reptile and an amphibian?  Show answer

Both are cold blooded. Reptiles are more closely related to birds, and they have thicker skin. Amphibians have thin skin that can breathe through the water. Amphibians go through a metamorphosis and they will lay eggs in the water. (From Nicole in Mrs. Woodall's class at Hayden Meadows Elementary School)  Hide

* What is the most natural habitat to see amphibians in?  Show answer

The best place to view them is around water, a pond or edge of a stream or lake. It doesn't mean you won't find them in deserts. As long as there's a water source you might find an amphibian. (From Katie in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary School)  Hide

* What is the largest amphibian in the world?  Show answer

While we are not sure what the largest amphibian in the world is, in Idaho, the Pacific Giant salamander is the largest, reaching six inches long. The largest frog is a bullfrog although it's not a native species to Idaho. (From Colin in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary School)  Hide

* How many different types of amphibians are there?  Show answer

In Idaho there are 10 species of frogs, four types of salamander, and one newt. (From Evan in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary)  Hide

* Do amphibians have ears?  Show answer

They don't have an outer ear but on the side of the head they have a tympanic membrane like the eardrum. When sound hits it, it vibrates. (From Cindy in Mrs. Anderson's class)  Hide

* Do amphibians have lungs?  Show answer

Some don't have lungs. Some salamanders that live in water all of their lives never get lungs and keep their gills. It depends on where they live. Amphibians do not have to be wet to breathe as adults. They can move a fair distance from the water and breathe through their lungs. They are tied to the water seasonally. So as adults amphibians breathe through their skin. As larvae they have gills and as they grow they lose the gills and have lungs. (From Mrs. Boehne's class at McDonald Elementary School in Moscow)  Hide

* Why are amphibians called amphibians?  Show answer

"Amphibian" means double life. The reason they are called this is because they live part of their life in the water and part on land. (From Nicole in Mrs. Woodall's class at Hayden Meadows Elementary School)  Hide

* How do amphibians stay alive with so many predators after them?  Show answer

They blend in and hide from predators. They are fast as adults, avoid their predators, and swim and burrow in the ground. (From David at home school in Weiser)  Hide

* How do amphibians hibernate?  Show answer

Usually they go down to the bottom of a pond and burrow into the soft dirt, and deeply, so they can stay below the frozen part of the ground. They have the ability to turn the glucose, the sugar in their blood, into something like an anti-freeze. What will happen when their body starts to slow down is they will change the sugar into anti-freeze and it gathers in the most important places it needs to stay alive. It gathers in the organs like the brain and liver, and both organs will stay living and the rest can freeze solid. That's why they don't have to use a lot of energy. They can kind of sit down there and hang out until things start to warm up. Then they warm up and thaw out and come back to life. (From Shawn, a homeschooler in Caldwell)  Hide

* Are frogs going extinct? Why is it a problem?  Show answer

This is the year of the frog as designated by the National Zoo and Aquarium Society, and it is said that frogs are endangered worldwide. It's a problem especially in tropical areas. Columbia has over 200 species of frogs that are considered to be endangered, which is incredible to think about. The reason we think it's becoming a problem is because they are so sensitive to changes in habitat. They are one of the very first animals to be affected if there's a chemical introduced in the environment or if there's the slightest change in the habitat, that's the main problem. They are an important part of the ecosystem and vital part of the food chain. They are food for other animals and also eat a lot of pests - human pests and bugs and stuff that we don't want to see around. They are just an important part of the overall planet that we live in. (From Ashlee in Mr. Myer's class at Eagle Hills Elementary)  Hide

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Teeth (Feb 2008)

Thanks to Dr. Dustin Weitz, Moscow dentist, and Dr. Stephen Bruce, Boise dentist for their answers

* Why should we floss our teeth every day?  Show answer

Flossing is important for several reasons. People can get different types of problems with their teeth, and one would be cavities. You can have gum problems, and flossing will get into places where your toothbrush just can't reach. So it helps clean your teeth to help you from having problems with your gums, which are around your teeth. (From Emma in Mrs. Fryer's class at Clearwater Valley Elementary)  Hide

* Are teeth a bone?  Show answer

Technically they are not a bone; they are actually harder than a bone. They're made up of enamel and dentin, and inside is the pulp where the nerves and blood vessels are. Those are necessary when that tooth is growing, and that's where you have this sensation of hot and cold or pain in a tooth. (From Sydney in Mrs. Woodall's class at Hayden Meadows Elementary School)  Hide

* How do you lose teeth?  Show answer

When you lose one of your baby teeth what's actually happening is you'll have a permanent tooth that is growing underneath the primary tooth (the baby tooth). The loosening is a process where the root of the baby tooth actually dissolves and then it will fall out on its own. (From Savannah in Mrs. Fryer's class at Clearwater Valley Elementary School)  Hide

* How does plaque make your teeth yellow?  Show answer

Plaque will actually build up on the surface of your tooth and can make a tooth look yellow. After you have that brushed off or cleaned off, your tooth actually won't be yellow underneath unless that plaque has sat on there for a long time. Plaque hardens and becomes tartar. And if you have that on your tooth, you should come in to a dentist and do a really good cleaning where we can get that off so it doesn't become a major problem. There are little pits and pores and grooves in your teeth, and things that people eat can sometimes cause stain to get into those areas and darken a person's tooth. (From Seyara in Mrs. Hooper's class at Gooding Elementary School)  Hide

* What is a root canal?  Show answer

When people talk about root canals typically what they're talking about is when the dentist has to go inside that tooth because either that tooth broke so severely it went into the pulp, or decay went into the pulp, or sometimes teeth just die. In those situations we have to make a hole through the top of the tooth, go into it, and clean out all of that tissue out of the canals where the nerves and blood vessels are. Then we put a soft filling material in there so they can keep that tooth in the mouth even though it is technically dead. (From Hannah in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary)  Hide

* How much candy does it take to rot out your teeth?  Show answer

It depends on how well you're taking care of your teeth. If a person does eat candy that has a lot of sugar in it, and if you leave it on for a long time, then you're going to have problems with that turning into the acid that can dissolve a person's tooth. But if you brush your teeth with toothpaste very soon after you've eaten candy, the toothpaste will help clean that off and also strengthen your tooth. (From Chase in Mrs. Hooper's class at Gooding Elementary School)  Hide

* What in toothpaste helps your teeth?  Show answer

Well, most of all there's an abrasive in there; very, very small pumice particles. It has an abrasive quality that helps to clean off the teeth, just like an abrasive cleaner that you would use on the floor. Most toothpaste also has fluoride, and fluoride is a good thing to have on teeth, because the fluoride and the bacteria that causes tooth decay don't get along very well. (From Henry at McDonald Elementary in Moscow)  Hide

* What connects your teeth to your jaw?  Show answer

The tooth sits in the bone, but then the gum tissue that you see around it connects to something that they call a ligament, like little fibers that hold the tooth into your jaw. That's one of the things that as a person gets older, if they're having plaque that gets built up in between their teeth, it can actually get down into that ligament and cause a problem that they call gum disease - that's where bacteria gets in between the jaw bone and the tooth, and that's also one of the reasons we like to get in there with floss, because the floss will get to that area where your toothbrush can't reach. (From Raely in Mrs. Hooper's class at Gooding Elementary School)  Hide

* My dad smokes. Is smoking bad for your teeth?  Show answer

That's a great question. Smoking can be very hard on a person's teeth because it can really dry a person's mouth out - everybody has saliva in their mouth, that's what makes your teeth wet. When the mouth dries out it actually irritates your gums, so you can get cavities a lot easier when you smoke. So actually, smoking cigarettes can be pretty hard on a person's teeth. A person is also more prone to oral cancer if they're a smoker. (From William in Mrs. Olson's class at Oregon Train Elementary School in Twin Falls)  Hide

* What are the causes of tooth decay?  Show answer

When we eat, a lot of the foods we eat have sugars in the food. Also, everybody has bacteria in their mouth, which are like little microscopic bugs. Those bacteria take that sugar and use it for food like we do our regular food, but when they break it down that actually makes acids. Acids dissolve the minerals out of your teeth, and that's what causes the cavity. (From Ryana in Mr. Franklin's class at Meridian Elementary School)  Hide

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Force and Motion (Jan 2008)

Thanks to Steve Shropshire, Professor of Physics, Idaho State University; and Jim Dull, Associate Professor of Physics, the College of Idaho for their answers

* What is gravity made of?  Show answer

It's not so much what gravity is made out of, it's what gravity does. Gravity is simply the interaction between objects that are big, usually. But it can be between objects that are small, too. So anytime there's stuff (material), then you're going to have a gravitational interaction between them. (From Nicole in Mrs. Woodall's class at Hayden Meadows Elementary School.)  Hide

* Who discovered gravity?  Show answer

Galileo did the first experiments with gravity and was able to describe how it affected motion, but Newton was the first one to really spell it out into a well-defined theory. The idea that not only do things with mass attract each other, but that attraction decreases with distance and is proportional to how much stuff you have with each object. So Newton was the first one to really nail down something close to the current theory we have. (From Aspen in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary School.)  Hide

* How far do you go into the atmosphere until gravity stops?  Show answer

The pull of gravity from our planet affects even distant planets. However, gravity from the earth has to be plenty strong, even as far out as the moon, to keep something as big as the moon moving around our planet. The reason that the moon doesn't shoot off away from us is it's constantly being pulled towards the earth from the force of gravity. Also, the earth is being pulled toward the moon. And, we're being pulled toward the sun because of its huge mass. You have to go way, way far away before you can start to really neglect the pull of the earth; you have to go way beyond Jupiter before you can neglect it to any reasonable degree. (From Janely at Westside Elementary in Idaho Falls)  Hide

* What makes studying force and motion interesting?  Show answer

We want to understand forces and we study them because basically any motion that occurs is going to occur because of a force that's on it. So we'll study big forces like gravity or smaller forces like electricity and magnetism. And then we also study forces that are very small - not necessarily small in size but small over the distance in which they interact with one another, such as nuclear forces. What we try to understand is why things move the way they do or predict how things will move in the future based upon these forces. (From Tom at Valley View Elementary)  Hide

* Is there gravity in space?  Show answer

Space pretty much starts where our atmosphere ends. And you certainly have gravity from the earth pulling the moon in. When people go up in the space shuttle or in rockets they're constantly being pulled back toward the earth. You often think of astronauts floating around. That's not because there's no gravity; there's actually quite a bit of gravity there, not much different than what we have on the surface of the planet. It's just that they're falling. And if you're falling you don't notice it so much especially if everything around you is falling too. People in the space shuttle are pulled very strongly by the earth's gravity, but they're falling all the time. They're actually going in a big circle in what we call an orbit around the planet. (From Carter, a third grader in home school)  Hide

* What do magnets have to do with force and motion?  Show answer

There is a force between two magnets. The North Pole will attract the South Pole, the South Pole will attract the North Pole, or they'll repel each other. So magnetism is a little bit different than gravity in the sense that there are two types of forces, attraction and repulsion, whereas gravity is only attractive. (From Marlee in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary School)  Hide

* What is stronger, gravity or friction?  Show answer

Friction is basically sticky things. When you try to rub one thing against another, they're kind of sticky and that's what we call friction. But if you had no gravity there would be no contact force between the objects. Without gravity there really wouldn't be friction, at least not much of it. The greater the contact force between the surface the greater they're being pushed together. And that's usually resulting from things being supported around gravity. Without that there would be very little contact force and very little friction. So it really depends on the circumstance. (From Bryan at Hayden Meadows Elementary School)  Hide

* Does the sun have gravity?  Show answer

The sun is huge and it's made of lots of "stuff." Scientists refer to that "stuff" as mass. All of the planets will revolve around the sun because of the gravitational force between the sun and the planets. The more mass of the object, the bigger it is, the greater the gravitational force. That's why the planets revolve around the sun because the sun's mass is so great. That's part of it. Let's go ahead and look at Newton's Law, number two. Forces make things move. The bigger the force or the lighter the object, the greater the motion. (From Todd is Mrs. Wysong's class at Rupert Elementary School)  Hide

* Can gravity be measured?  Show answer

Yes, gravity can be measured. Any force can be measured. We measure gravity all the time by simply weighing ourselves on the scale. It's telling us what the force of interaction between us and the earth is. So if we weigh less that means that force of direction is less. That's a pretty simple way to figure out gravity. (From Dallin in home school in Idaho Falls)  Hide

* How do roller coasters stop and go using gravity?  Show answer

Usually there's some chain or something, some force that's pulling it up the hill. What happens when they go down the hill is that there is a sideways force maybe, but usually they use gravity, at least on the old roller coasters. So you're going down and falling at an angle in this case. It uses gravity to go down. To stop a roller coaster they're going to increase the friction. So they have this little, well, block of some sort, usually of wood or rubber that pushes against the roller coaster cart and slows it down gradually so that you don't pop forward too quickly. (From Hannah in Mrs. Woodall's class at Hayden Meadows Elementary School)  Hide

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Owls (Dec 2007)

Thanks to Vicky Runnoe, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, and Larry Ridenhour, Bureau of Land Management for their answers

* How many different types of owls live in Idaho?  Show answer

North America has 19 different owls. Idaho is a great place for owls because we have 14 different kinds of owls living here. They're all found scattered throughout the state. We have certain owls, like the Great Horned Owl, that you can find in all different habitats in Idaho - up in the mountains of northern Idaho, the forested areas, or in the deserts of southwest Idaho. (From Daniel in Mrs. Maybon's class at Homedale Elementary School)  Hide

* What kind of foods do owls eat?  Show answer

Owls will eat just about anything they can catch. The smaller owls will capture little crickets, grasshoppers, moths, night flying, early morning creepy crawly insects. But an animal as big as the Great Horned Owl may actually eat skunks, rabbits, squirrels, and anything in between. Also, a large number of the owls eat rodents. (From Jared in Mrs. Sundvik's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary School)  Hide

* Can owls turn their heads all the way around?  Show answer

No, they can't. Owls can turn their heads about three-quarters of a circle, about 270 degrees. They are able to do this because they have twice as many neck vertebrae as we have. We have seven and owls have 14. Their muscles are very elastic and strong and they can turn their heads very quickly from one side to the other. That is probably why people think owls can turn their heads all of the way around. They can turn their head back so fast to us it almost looks like they have turned their head all the way around. (From Mrs. Baille's class at Pinehurst Elementary School in Pinehurst, Idaho)  Hide

* Do owls chew their food?  Show answer

They don't. They do what your mother always tells you not to do - they don't chew well and they swallow their food whole. (From Mrs. Baille's class at Pinehurst Elementary School in Pinehurst, Idaho)  Hide

* How well do owls hear?  Show answer

Studies have shown that the Great Gray Owl, Idaho's largest owl by height, not weight, can hear a mouse from 60 feet away when it is about almost a foot and a half underneath the snow. That is pretty good hearing. Measuring-wise, I don't know if they have done a lot of studies to measure how far. Since they hunt mainly by hearing they need to be able to hear very well. (From David, a homeschooler in Weiser, Idaho)  Hide

* What is the biggest owl?  Show answer

The tallest owls are Great Gray Owls. Snowy Owls, which are Harry Potter types, they're the heaviest. They weigh a little over four pounds. The great gray owl, which is actually bigger physically, only weighs 2.5 pounds. Great Horned Owls are kind of in the mix with them. They have about the same wing span that a great gray would have, but are a little lighter than a snowy owl. (From Kinley in Mrs. McCamish-Cameron's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* How can owls fly so quietly?  Show answer

It has to do with the edges of the flight feathers. When a hawk flies it is fairly loud because the air is moving against the wings. But an owl's wing is almost like a cone right on the very edge, and the air moves through it; you just don't hear that. It is very, very silent. (From Tessa in Mrs. McCamish-Cameron's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* Why do Great Horned Owls have feathers that look like ears?  Show answer

They're not ears, they're used as camouflage. When you see an owl, especially if you are looking for them during the day, you are trying to spot them and that round head will stand out, especially this time of year in a barren tree. What they will do is raise their feathers and pull their body feathers in tight to break up the silhouette so it looks like just another part of the tree. (From Chris in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary School)  Hide

* Do owls see better during the day or at night?  Show answer

Owls actually see quite well during the day, but they see so much better at night and it has to do with several things. One is that they have huge eyeballs. The eyeball takes up more room inside their head than the brain does. You can see those big eye sockets, and in those eyes they have a couple of different kinds of cells like we do called rods and cones. Cones are how animals see color. Rods allow them to see light and dark. Owls have a lot more rod cells in their eyes, which allow them to pick up all the light and dark. If you have ever seen an animal where there is light flashed against it and you see that funny looking eye shine, they have them on the back of both eyes, and owls also have those. If you combine all of that, it gives them excellent eyesight in darkness. (From Ira in Mrs. Spellman's class at Payette Middle School)  Hide

* Do owls blink?  Show answer

They actually do. The interesting thing is that unlike humans, who typically only blink our top eyelid, owls blink both eyelids. A lot of times when they are just blinking to clear the lens off they will use the top; a lot of time when they sleep they will raise their lower eyelid up. And they also have a third eyelid that is a clear membrane that brushes across the eyelid to clean it off from any debris. (From MinHeyk in Mrs. Kopke's class at Riverside Elementary School)  Hide

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Green Energy (Nov 2007)

Thanks to Professor Jon Van Gerpen, University of Idaho, and Robert Neilson, Idaho National Laboratory for their answers

* Why is it called "green" energy rather than another color like yellow or orange?  Show answer

Green is the color that many people think of when they think of renewable energy and environmentally-conscious efforts. So people just started calling it "green energy." It reflects the idea that this kind of energy is easier on the environment than traditional energy sources. (From Pedro in Mrs. Whitesell's class at Gooding Elementary)  Hide

* Does ethanol pollute the air more than gasoline?  Show answer

No, basically it's doesn't. The components that go into the air when you burn ethanol are typically friendlier than the components you burn with regular gasoline. The difference with ethanol is that when you burn ethanol, you do get small concentrations of some chemicals going into the air that you don't typically see with gasoline. Is it a significant enough difference in the pollutants that we should all be using ethanol versus gasoline? Well, gasoline is getting harder and harder to find. But since ethanol comes from growing plants, it is basically a way to convert solar energy into liquid fuels. With ethanol, what carbon dioxide comes out into the air while you're driving your car is about the same as the carbon dioxide that the plant took out of the air while it was growing. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. Because of climate change, we want to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide introduced in the air. That's why some folks are concerned about ethanol. (From Mikayla from Victory Star School)  Hide

* How much energy does a regular family use in a year?  Show answer

We use a lot of energy in this country. While we've got 5% of the world's population, we use about 25% of the world's energy. So we use a huge amount of energy in that regard. It is hard to say how much an individual family uses each year, but it is easy to say we all use too much. (From Carly in Post Falls)  Hide

* How big a difference can changing incandescent bulbs to fluorescent bulbs make?  Show answer

A lot. It uses about one-quarter the energy of an incandescent light bulb. People have talk about how much energy you would save if every house just changed one normal light bulb to one compact fluorescent and the amount saved is huge. Compact fluorescent bulbs also last maybe five or six times longer, so you don't have to change the light bulbs as frequently. (From Joan in Boise)  Hide

* How do electric cars use or save green energy?  Show answer

Electric cars save energy or are more "green" because they typically don't use gasoline or diesel or other fossil fuels. There are at least three different kinds of cars: those that are pure electrics that just use batteries; those that use hybrid electric engines - vehicles that use batteries and also have small gasoline engines; and vehicles that use fuel cells. Fuel cells are a little different because they typically use hydrogen to generate electricity that generates the power that turns the wheels. There is one thing to remember about electric vehicles. The electricity that you use to recharge the batteries has to come from someplace. In most cases, it comes from the electric socket in your house, which comes from a power plant someplace. To make electric cars are truly "green," we have to make sure that the power plants, which create the electricity to charge the batteries, aren't adding to the energy crisis too. (From Veronica in Mrs. Kerr's Class at Roosevelt Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* How is sunlight converted into green energy?  Show answer

Sunlight is really the source of most of our energy, either directly or indirectly. Sunlight is what powers the wind and it's a source of energy that plants use to survive. Plants are what we use as sources of energy, either directly when we make ethanol or biodiesel, or when we burn wood, or even when we burn petroleum and natural gas that's coming from fossilized plants and biological material that was laid down millions of years ago. But it's still all originating from the sun. Solar panels convert the sun into energy. Photovoltaic, solar cells, use special materials that create electricity when placed in sunlight. The sun causes electrons to move around in the material. Those electrons then are collected and made into an electric current that can be used to power a light bulb, or a radio or television set. (From Shawn in Mrs. Whitesell's class at Gooding Elementary)  Hide

* Can we run out of energy?  Show answer

Certainly the energy that we get from dams that produce electricity, what we call hydropower, doesn't usually run out because the water used to turn the generators is replenished every time it rains. But sources of energy like petroleum that we pump out of the ground are another matter. We're not really going to pump out every bit of oil that's down there. It just becomes more and more difficult to find the oil and more and more difficult to pump it out. So if we want to pay $15 a barrel for oil, there may not be very much of that kind of oil left. But if we're willing to pay $90 per barrel for the oil, there's more at that price. And if we have to pay $200 per barrel for the oil, then there's quite a bit of that oil available. So you have to look at how much money you're willing to pay to look for and to find and to pump out the oil and then decide how much oil is actually available for us. You also have to consider the cost to the environment to get the oil and decide if are we willing to pay that cost as well. (From Sara in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* Where would be the best place in Idaho to put a wind farm?  Show answer

Wind farms are found in areas where you have mountains because typically what you're looking for are places where the wind accelerates as it moves past mountains and mountain ridges. So the Snake River Plain, for example, is an excellent conduit for wind blowing west to east. That's why we have some wind farms in southeast Idaho. They pick up the energy as the wind rises up over the mountains in that part of the state. You don't put a wind farm where there isn't much wind, and since most of us don't like to live in windy spots, most wind farms aren't close to populations. (From Hugo in Mrs. Schweitzer's fourth grade class at Riverside Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* What is the main cause of air pollution?  Show answer

The main cause of air pollution is typically from the burning of fossil fuels. Typically you're looking at hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and other things that come from petroleum and coal-based products. Cars, factories, and power plants are some of the main sources of burning fossil fuels. Burning wood can add to pollution levels too. (From Evan in Mrs. Hunt's fourth grade class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* What is the cheapest form of green energy?  Show answer

The answer is easy. It's conservation. It's always a lot cheaper to not use energy or use less of it than have to create more energy in the first place. But if you want to know what's the cheapest form of energy that we might use, I might vote for wood. Burning wood, if you can do it cleanly, is actually quite inexpensive. It is also renewable, but does have an environmental cost to consider. One other form we are lucky to have here in Idaho is cheap hydropower. But when you think about it, the reason that hydropower is so cheap is that very large, very expensive dams and hydroelectric plants were built 40 and 50 years ago. Now they're paid off, but they're robust in the sense they can operate for many, many, many years. In the same sense the cost of nuclear power may some day be inexpensive. They may be expensive plants to build today, but they may give you cheap power in years to come. (From Brandon in Filer)  Hide

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Endangered Species (Oct 2007)

Thanks to Steve Burns, Zoo Boise Director; Eric Yensen, The College of Idaho; and Scott Ransom, Pocatello Zoo Director for their answers

* What animal has been endangered the longest?  Show answer

When the Endangered Species Act was passed in 1973, there was a whole group of animals that were immediately listed as endangered. These included creatures like the American Alligator, the Bald Eagle, and the California condor. Some of those animals have all been endangered since 1973. The Bald Eagle has since been removed from the endangered list. (From Evan in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* How many endangered animals and plants are in Idaho?  Show answer

There are 20 endangered or threatened species in the state of Idaho. Gray wolves above Coeur d'Alene are listed as threatened. The Gray Wolf is considered an "experimental" species in the main part of Idaho. The Grizzly Bear is considered threatened. We have salmon and steelhead that are endangered in most of the river runs. And what is it about these animals, which causes them to be endangered or threatened? I think we have different causes. The Northern Idaho Ground Squirrel is endangered or technically threatened because of changes in forest management. Fire suppression for many years has led to lots of trees invading the meadows in which they live. So that's been the problem with that particular species. I think we have to look for different causes for different species. It's not one blanket problem. (From Meaghan in Mrs. Woodall's class in Hayden Elementary school in Hayden)  Hide

* What is the most endangered species in the world right now?  Show answer

There's the Lear's Macaw down in Brazil. I think there are very few Siberian Tigers left, a very small number of South China Tigers. It would be interesting if they could prove that the Ivory-billed Woodpecker does exist because there would be a very small number of those. They had a sighting in 1999 and captured an audio recording of its call in 2004. It's a very large woodpecker that, I think, was classified as extinct in 1996. It is found, hopefully, in Arkansas but they are not sure if the bird is still in existence. (From Allison in Mrs. Guilford's Class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* Why do people endanger species when the species may actually help us?  Show answer

I don't think anyone goes out and intentionally tries to endanger a species. I think that everyone needs to do a better job of understanding how the natural world works and what our impact on it is. No matter what humans do, we do have an impact. Sometimes it's a small impact; sometimes it's a large impact. But we do have an impact. And so the more that we learn about the natural world and how the things that we do in our everyday lives affect those species, the better off we all are. Once we understand that, then we can change our activity to have a smaller impact. I think a lot of people have the idea that we can make a choice between nature and economy, and they don't realize that those two things are interlinked. Not realizing that gets us into trouble a lot of times. So we go ahead and do things because we see an economic advantage in doing them and we don't always understand the consequences. (From Alyssa in Mrs. McCamish-Cameron class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* What kinds of penguins are endangered and are they endangered because of hunting?  Show answer

There is one type of penguin that lives in Africa and the Humboldt Penguin that lives along the edges of Chile' and Peru that are endangered. There may be others. These penguins are endangered for a couple of different reasons. The first reason would be destruction of habitat. They live in areas where people mine for guano or poop. Guano makes a great fertilizer. These penguins actually make their nests out of guano so people come in and destroy their nests. Also oil spills have really taken a toll on penguins in certain parts of the world. And then if we take too many fish out of the ocean, then penguins don't have enough fish to eat. Those are the big three reasons why they're endangered. (From Chris in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* Are tigers endangered?  Show answer

They are. Back in 1991, scientists estimated there were about 100,000 tigers in the world. They stretched all the way from the area around the Caspian Sea, Iran, all the way through India, southeast Asia, through China and then all the way up into Russia. And researchers said that there were eight subspecies. Three of those subspecies have gone extinct: the ones in Bali, the ones in Java, and the ones around the Caspian Sea. Scientists also wonder if there are any South China Tigers left. So the number of tigers has dropped from about 100,000 down to probably about 5,000 left in the wild, which really isn't very many. (From Tyler in Mrs. McCamish-Cameron's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* Do endangered animals always go extinct?  Show answer

No. With successes like the Bald Eagle or the Peregrine Falcon, we seem to have made some headway saving some species. (From Nicole in Mrs. Woodall's class at Hayden Meadows Elementary in Hayden)  Hide

* Are Kimono Dragons extinct or endangered?  Show answer

They are classified as an endangered species. There were never that many Komodo Dragons. They live on four little islands in Indonesia. They estimate there are about 3,000 to 4,000 of them left in the world. The problem is they come from an island. If you live on a big huge chunk of land like Idaho and something happens, like a big fire, chances are you can move to another area. But when animals live on an island, if something happens, chances are they can't move. And so when you live on an island, the chances of going extinct sometimes get greater because there's nowhere to go. Island populations are always the most vulnerable, it seems. (From Josiah in Caldwell)  Hide

* Are polar bears endangered?  Show answer

There is some question about if they are endangered or not, but there's evidence that the loss of Arctic ice is going to hurt them. There are still some good populations in various places, but they have shown that global warming will not be good for polar bears. They like to go out on the ice and hunt for seals. If the ice melts and it's not strong enough, they can't stand on it and they break through. This means Polar bears could drown or they won't have enough places to go find seals. So hopefully, we can do something about global warming and keep polar bears around. (From Katie in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* What can we do around our homes to save species?  Show answer

I think the biggest thing is educating the public, and especially children, that the situation is not hopeless. You can do things to protect wildlife in your own areas. You can build birdhouses, birdbaths and encourage your parents not to use dangerous chemicals on the lawn. You can also help protect animals' habitats and their water supply. We can all also support zoos. Some zoos do breed endangered species. There are captive breeding programs. And in some cases, zoo officials have reintroduced endangered species back into the wild. And for some animals, the zoo is the only place that they can be found. Breeding programs try to increase animal populations so they can go back into the wild but it's not a fix-all. It's not going to work for every single species. But it works sometimes, and we should support them. (From Mrs. Childer's class at Hayden Meadows Elementary in Hayden)  Hide

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Flight (Sep 2007)

Thanks to Frank Lester, Education Coordinator for the Aeronautics division of the Idaho Transportation Department and Lori MacNichol, pilot and flight school owner in McCall for their answers

* How high can an airplane travel?  Show answer

If you stop and think about it, the space shuttle is actually an airplane until it leaves the atmosphere, at which time it becomes a rocket. So, an airplane can fly to the top of the atmosphere, which is probably in the vicinity of 24 to 25 miles, maybe higher. Most passenger flights, however, are limited to 50,000 feet. The newer aircraft will go as high as maybe 45,000 feet. (From Brett in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* How do wings support an aircraft and aid in flying?  Show answer

When the wing travels through the air, the top of the wing is a little bit higher and the bottom of the wing is flatter. So when the leading edge of the wing hits the air, the air travels faster across the top of the wing than the air traveling along on the bottom of the wing. That difference creates lift. But you have to have more than just lift to fly; you also have to have thrust. So, the motor on the front is turning and the propellers attached create thrust, which moves the aircraft down the runway. Then the air strikes the leading edge of the wings causing the Bernoulli effect creating lift. (From Colton in Mrs. Rice's class at Mill Creek Elementary in Middleton)  Hide

* How do they design airplanes?  Show answer

That's a complex question. There is a huge amount to it. They are looking for how much weight the plane will have to carry, the shape of the wing and what the purpose or utility of the aircraft will be. Lori flies a Super Cub. It has a tail wheel instead of nose gear because the plane is designed to land on rough strips. So her plane is not designed to go fast but is designed to generate a lot of lift and land on rough surfaces. You wouldn't land a 747 or 737 on one of those airstrips. (From Edisa in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* How does a jet turbine engine work?  Show answer

You have four phases in a turbine. The air is drawn into the turbine where it is compressed. The compressed air is heated up. Then there is an igniter phase. Fuel is pumped into the engine and mixed with the compressed air. The mixture is ignited resulting in a minor explosion contained within the turbine. Finally, the air is blown out the back to create thrust. And according to Newton's third law, you have an equal and opposite reaction to the thrust going out the back which causes the aircraft to go forward. Very simple. "Suck, squeeze, bang, and blow" is what we call it. That's how a turbine works. (From Shawn in Caldwell)  Hide

* Is it possible for a human to fly flapping wings?  Show answer

Not exactly. In 1997, there was a human powered aircraft called the Gossamer Condor. It was basically a flying wing with a gondola underneath for the pilot. It was built of lightweight plastics. It didn't flap, but soared like a bird. Primarily though, most aircrafts' wings cannot flap. Airplanes just weigh too much. Birds use their muscles to move their wings for lift. Aircraft need engines. (From Hugo in Mrs. Schweitzer's class at Riverside Elementary in Boise)  Hide

* How can an airplane fly without feathers?  Show answer

An airplane can fly without feathers because it has its own covering called the skin. Airplane's skin is usually made of fabric or aluminum. It provides a surface area that air can flow over, just like wind flows over the feathers on a bird's wing. (From Emily in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary)  Hide

* How many people can fit on a plane?  Show answer

Well, that depends upon the kind of airplane. On some planes I fly, two people are the maximum number. Sometimes I can fly an airplane that will seat up to 16. There's even a small jet airplane that seats one person. On the other end, the new Airbus 380 holds 500 to 600 people. It's huge. (From Aubrey in Nampa)  Hide

* How old is the oldest airplane?  Show answer

First there were hot air balloons. Those go back to the 1700's in France. There were also gliders and the like early on. But the Wright brothers developed the first motorized airplane that flew for more than just a few feet. It was developed just over a hundred years ago. But the French had a lot to do with what we do with aircraft, how they are designed and how they perform. There are many parts of the aircraft that are French words. (From Hannah in Mrs. Hunt's class at Cynthia Mann Elementary)  Hide

* What is the stuff that comes out of the back of a jet?  Show answer

It is called a vapor trail. Jet aircraft, any aircraft really, produce an exhaust from its engines, just like a car. This byproduct contains water and it is very hot when it comes out of the back of the engine. Well, it is very cold at that altitude and the water condenses and forms a fog. So as a pilot flies along, you see the vapor trail behind the aircraft. (From Alex in Post Falls)  Hide

* How does wind impact how you fly a plane?  Show answer

It depends on the size of the airplane. If it is a small airplane and the wind blows on the side of the craft, then, the airplane will actually need to fly what appears to be a crooked or crabbed flight path to compensate for drift. So to track a straight line, we must then crab the aircraft in order to get to our destination. We are most conscious of the wind when we land. Because airplanes cannot land sideways, we have to compensate for wind by adjusting the way the aircraft is flying. We adjust the power, the yoke, and the wing so that the aircraft actually is in what we call a slipping motion down to the runway. So you have to watch out for wind. (From Chavawn in Dietrich)  Hide