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Archaeopteryx fossil

 

 

 Archaeopteryx lithographica fossil, around 147 million years old.

Archaeopteryx is the earliest known bird and the Natural History Museum cares for the first skeleton specimen ever found. This spectacular fossil helped prove that modern birds evolved from dinosaurs and was the first example providing support for Darwin's theory of evolution. It is the most valuable fossil in the Museum's collection.

Sketch by Joseph Dinkel from Richard Owen’s paper on Archaeopteryx, 1863.

Mysterious discovery

The fossil caused a lot of confusion when it was discovered in Germany in 1861. It had feathers like a bird, but teeth, claws and a bony tail like a dinosaur.
Richard Owen, the Museum’s first superintendent, knew there was something extraordinary about it. World-famous for his skill in identifying animals, he classified Archaeopteryx as a bird. No birds were known from so far back in time.
But Owen failed to realise just how remarkable Archaeopteryx was.

Evidence for evolution

The curious fossil was discovered just a few years after Charles Darwin published his controversial theory of evolution.
In 1868, Darwin’s strongest supporter, Thomas Henry Huxley, suggested Archaeopteryx showed an evolutionary link between dinosaurs and birds. Until then, no intermediate forms between living animals and their supposed ancestors had been found. The half-bird half-dinosaur became central to the evolution debate.

Illustration of how Archaeopteryx might have looked. © DEA Picture Library / De Agostini / Getty Images

Capable of flight

The shape and arrangement of the wing feathers of Archaeopteryx show adaptations for flight similar to modern birds. 
Museum scientist Angela Milner led an international team that found further evidence Archaeopteryx could fly by studying its brain.
Bird brains fit very tightly in the skull so an imprint is left on the inside of the bones.
Of the 10 Archaeopteryx specimens known to science, this is the only one whose skull and brain imprint could be studied. The back part of the skull was at the edge of the specimen block, so it could be removed and put in a CT scanner. Scientists used the scan data to build a 3D reconstruction of the brain. It shows Archaeopteryx had the sight, balance and coordination necessary for flight.

Fuzzy raptor, Sinornithosaurus, a flightless feathered dinosaur that lived in China 124-122 million years ago. © John Sibbick / Natural History Museum, London

Dinosaur or bird?

Fossils found more recently in China (such as Sinornithosaurus and Xiaotingia) also have feathers, but ones adapted for warmth and display, not flight.
They are the closest relatives to Archaeopteryx yet discovered but are definitely dinosaurs, so they throw into question whether Archaeopteryx was a bird after all. Perhaps it was one of many early flying experiments rather than the direct ancestor of modern birds.
On balance, the evidence still places Archaeopteryx with the birds, in the group Avialae. New discoveries will clarify the evolution of the bird family tree.

Official representative of the species

Fossil feather that was the original type specimen for Archaeopteryx until 2011. © O Louis Mazzatenta / National Geographic / Getty Images

Originally, a single fossil feather was the official representative of the species Archaeopteryx lithographica. But despite being discovered first, the feather cannot be proved to belong to Archaeopteryx.
The complete skeleton and feathers of the fossil looked after by the Museum provide a more reliable reference. In 2011, it replaced the fossil feather as the type specimen. So it is now the one all others are compared to.

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What Caused the Big Bang?

Birth Of Universe

Video courtesy of National Geographic Channel.
What is exactly universe? The universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists,including all physical matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space,although this usage may differ with the context. The term universe may be used in slightly different contextual senses, denoting such concepts as the cosmos, the world, or nature. Observations of earlier stages in the development of the universe, which can be seen at great distances, suggest that the universe has been governed by the same physical laws and constants throughout most of its extent and history.Our universe, the galaxies, solar system, planet Earth -- land, sea, air, life -- where did they come from? Astronomer Edwin Hubble believes our universe once was very tiny. Take a journey through space and time to discover how the universe was born.

Kids 4 Clean Air

 

What can you do:
There are many things we can do to help reduce air pollution and global warming.
Use buses and trains instead of cars, as they can carry a lot more people in one journey. This cuts down the amount of pollution produced.
Walking or cycling whenever you can will be even better, as it does not create any pollution. It will also be good for your body, as regular exercise will keep you fit and healthy.
If your parents must use the car, ask them to avoid using it for very short journeys if possible, as this creates unnecessary pollution. Try to encourage them to share their journeys with other people, for example when they go to work or go shopping. Also encourage them to drive more slowly as this produces less pollution and less carbon dioxide.
Energy is produced to generate electricity and to keep us warm. Most energy is produced by the burning of fossil fuels, like coal, oil and gas, which release carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. Fuel burnt in our cars also releases carbon dioxide. As an individual, you do not have a lot of control on how your energy is produced. However, you can control the way in which you use that energy. Using less energy means less of it needs to be produced. So less carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere.
We can also help prevent pollution from our own homes which may contribute to acid rain and poor air quality, and increases emissions of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Turning off lights when they are not needed and not wasting electricity will reduce the demand for energy. Less electricity will need to be produced and so less coal, oil and gas will have to be burnt in power stations, which means less air pollution and less carbon dioxide!
Pollution formed indoors can be reduced by ensuring that all gas appliances are working correctly. Good ventilation will improve indoor air quality by dispersing biological pollutants like dust mite, and other pollutants such as cigarette smoke.
Most of the rubbish we throw away can be recycled, such as glass bottles and jars, steel and aluminium cans, plastic bottles and waste paper.
Recycling used materials uses less energy than making new ones.
Composting fruit and vegetable waste reduces the amount of rubbish buried at rubbish dumps.


What are the Governments doing?
Governments throughout the world have already taken action for these different environmental problems (i.e. Acid Rain, Air Quality, Ozone Hole, Global Warming). In their plans they hope to reduce the amount of emissions of greenhouse gases produced by man.
About half of the greenhouse effect is caused by our use of energy, especially from fossil fuels. Other sources of energy could be used which do not emit carbon dioxide, e.g. wind power, solar (sun power) and wave power. In the home and at school, we must learn to use energy efficiently and not waste it.

ScienceCasts: El Niño - Is 2014 the New 1997?

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The Birth Of The Moon

Relative and Absolute Dating

The Story Of Earth Part 1 of 10

The Earth might seem solid beneath our feet but five billion years ago there was no sign of the planet we call home. Instead there was only a new star and a cloud of dust in our solar system. Over millions of years, a series of violent changes led to the formation of our world and, eventually, the creation of life.

Fronts animation

http://www.goldridge08.com/flash/airmasses.swf

What are weather fronts?

Cold Fronts and Warm Fronts

How to read weather maps

Make a terrarium mini garden

http://climatekids.nasa.gov/mini-garden/

We planted succulents in our terrarium. We picked different shapes, colors, and sizes. Succulents need very little water.

A terrarium is like an aquarium, but for plants instead of fish. It is made in just about any glass container. It is planted to look like a miniature garden or forest enclosed in its own little world.
You can easily make a beautiful terrarium yourself.
First, you want all the plants to thrive in the same kind of environment. For example, you could plant all succulents (including cactus), because they need very little water. Or you could plant all ferns, because they like it moist. You could put moss with the ferns, because moss likes it moist too. If you put a fern with a cactus, one or the other might not do well (the fern if it gets too dry, the cactus if it gets too wet).
You can use an open container or a closed container.
An open container is best for succulents and cacti. They like lots of air.
A closed container (with a lid) might be best for ferns, ivies, and begonias. They like it humid. But if you see a lot of water condensing on the lid, remove it for a while, then replace it.
For any terrarium, you need:

• Clear glass container. For example, aquarium of any size, goldfish bowl, cookie jar, pickle jar, vase with a broad bottom, brandy snifter, or even a shallow dish with a glass bowl turned upside-down over it.

• Rocks (around marble sized, depending on the size of container)

• Activated charcoal to filter the water and help prevent growth of fungi

• Potting Soil (sterilized)

• Small plants of different colors, shapes, & textures. Try to get miniature plants that aren’t going to grow too big for the container.

Optional:

• Moss
• Decorative rocks or pebbles, or both
• Fun décor, like tiny pine cones, shells, ceramic animals, or a garden gnome.

Make sure your glass container is clean and shiny.

The layers of rock and soil are part of the beauty of your terrarium.

Start with a layer of rocks, about one inch or so, at the bottom of your container. These will help the soil drainage, so the roots of your plants won’t get water-logged.
Add a 1/2-inch-thick layer of charcoal.
Fill the container up to half-full with potting soil.
Plant your plants. When you remove them from their little pots, carefully tease the roots apart and remove some of the old soil so they will fit nicely in the terrarium. Arrange them to look nice. Leave some space for them to breathe and grow. Pat down the soil so they don’t get uprooted easily.
Add decorative pebbles, rocks, pine cones, or whatever to make your terrarium look like a little garden world.
Water the plants, but not too much.
Place in indirect light.

Guided tour of the Big Questions.

 NASA’s Climate Kids website brings the exciting science of climate change and sustainability to life. Targeting upper-elementary-aged children, the site is full of interactive games, hands-on activities, and engaging articles that make climate science accessible and fun. With a special section for educators, Climate Kids is great for parents and teachers as well.
 Find out how global changes affect our planet over time using the interactive Climate Time Machine. 
Follow the adventures of a quirky polar bear and monkey as they cope with climate change and humans in the animated feature “Climate Tales.”
 Learn about ways you can help the planet in the “green careers” section. Become a climate expert!
Go to this site:
http://climatekids.nasa.gov/big-questions/

Answer these questions :
What does climate change mean?
What is the big deal with  Carbon?
What is the greenhouse effect?
How do we know the climate is changing?
What is happening in the oceans?
What can  we do to help?
What else do we need to find out?

What is El Niño anyway?

http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/el-nino/en/

El Niño is a condition that sometimes occurs in the Pacific Ocean, but it is so big that it affects weather all over the world.
Weather depends a lot on ocean temperatures. Where the ocean is warm, more clouds form, and more rain falls in that part of the world. In the Pacific Ocean, near the equator, the Sun makes the water especially warm on the surface.
Normally, strong winds along the equator push the warm surface water near South America westward toward Indonesia. When this happens, the cooler water underneath rises up toward the surface of the ocean near South America.

However, in the fall and winter of some years, these winds are much weaker than usual. They actually blow the other way (toward South America instead of Indonesia) in October. So the warm surface water along the equator piles up along the coast of South America and then moves north towards California and south toward Chile.
Many fish that live in the normally cooler waters off the coast of South America move away or die. The fishermen call this condition of warm coastal waters and poor fishing "El Niño" meaning "the Christ Child," because in the occasional years it comes, it comes at Christmas time.

In El Niño years, lots of rain clouds forms over this warm part of the ocean. These clouds move inland and dump much more rain than usual in South and Central America and in the United States. Meanwhile, other parts of the world can suffer drought. Weather patterns all over the world may be unusual, making lakes out of deserts and charcoal heaps out of rain forests.

How do we know what is happening to the ocean temperatures around the Earth? The best way is to go up into space!

How do you take the ocean's temperature from space?

Where the ocean is warmer, sea level is slightly higher. In 2008, the Jason-2 satellite (also called the Ocean Surface Topography Mission) was launched into orbit around Earth. It continued the measurements being made by Jason-1, launched in 2001. Both satellites have a sensitive altimeter onboard. An altimeter measures height from itself down to the Earth's surface (land or water).

Jason-1 uses radar to measure the small hills and valleys of the ocean's surface. This information helps scientists understand ocean circulation and predict climate events such as El Niño. Jason-1 was launched in 2001 and is still working!

Jason-2, also called the Ocean Surface Topography Mission, continues the work begun by Jason-1. Jason-2 was launched in 2008 and is still orbiting and collecting data.

Using information from Jason-1 and Jason-2, scientists make topographical maps of the hills and valleys on the ocean's surface. The different heights of the ocean are shown on flat maps using different colors.


In these maps, purple, blue, and green are the colder parts of the ocean where the sea level is a little lower. Red, pink, and white are the warmer parts where the surface of the ocean bulges upward a bit. The surface of the water where the ocean is warmest is only about 2 meters (a bit less than 7 feet) higher than in the coldest areas.

Weather

The Four Seasons:

The seasons change

Four times a year

From spring to winter

They appear

Spring is wet 

The flowers grow 

It rains a lot 

And melts the snow

Summer is hot 

It's full of sun 

There is no school 

It's lots of fun

Fall is cool 

The leaves fall down 

The colors change 

All over town

Winter is cold 

The snowflakes fall 

We skate and ski 

And make snowballs

The seasons change 

From sun to snow 

And that is all 

You need to know

Air Pressure explained

Bill Nye The Science Guy - Storms

AMAZING WEATHER VIDEO - 60 Minutes of HD Tornadoes, Hurricanes and Light...

Earthquakes and volcanoes

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/kids/

Kids earthquakes: questions and answers:
http://www.iol.ie/~dromore/Classes/earthquakes/questions.htm

Earthquake Facts

1. The largest recorded earthquake in the United States was a magnitude 9.2 that struck Prince William Sound, Alaska on Good Friday, March 28, 1964 UTC.
2. The largest recorded earthquake in the world was a magnitude 9.5 (Mw) in Chile on May 22, 1960.
3. The earliest reported earthquake in California was felt in 1769 by the exploring expedition of Gaspar de Portola while the group was camping about 48 kilometers (30 miles) southeast of Los Angeles.
4. Before electronics allowed recordings of large earthquakes, scientists built large spring-pendulum seismometers in an attempt to record the long-period motion produced by such quakes. The largest one weighed about 15 tons. There is a medium-sized one three stories high in Mexico City that is still in operation.
5. The average rate of motion across the San Andreas Fault Zone during the past 3 million years is 56 mm/yr (2 in/yr). This is about the same rate at which your fingernails grow. Assuming this rate continues, scientists project that Los Angeles and San Francisco will be adjacent to one another in approximately 15 million years.
6. The East African Rift System is a 50-60 km (31-37 miles) wide zone of active volcanics and faulting that extends north-south in eastern Africa for more than 3000 km (1864 miles) from Ethiopia in the north to Zambezi in the south. It is a rare example of an active continental rift zone, where a continental plate is attempting to split into two plates which are moving away from one another. 
7. ...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/geography/natural_hazards/volcanoes_rev3.shtml