Cat

Cats are similar in anatomy to the other felids, with strong, flexible bodies, quick reflexes, sharp retractable claws, and teeth adapted to killing small prey. As nocturnal predators, cats use their acute hearing and ability to see in near darkness to locate prey. Not only can cats hear sounds too faint for human ears, they can also hear sounds higher in frequency than humans can perceive. This is because the usual prey of cats (particularly rodents such as mice) make high frequency noises, so the hearing of the cat has evolved to pinpoint these faint high-pitched sounds. Cats also have a much better sense of smell than humans.for more detail click here

9 Ideas for a Home Science Center

Encourage your young child's natural curiosity about the world around him by keeping science-related materials handy.

 

1. Magnifying glasses, plastic mirrors, and prisms
2. Flashlights and colored cellophane
3. Magnets
4. Twigs, leaves, nuts, seeds, eggshells, feathers, and shells
5. Stones, minerals, and fossils
6. Lotto games and matching cards of plants and animals
7. Plants — small cacti in sand, ferns in peat moss, and dwarf citrus trees in sandy loam
8. Empty bird or insect nests
9. Beans, grains, rice, and coffee beans for sorting and exploring

 

Science Discoveries

Expect your child to learn about the physical world with lots of hands-on activities.

arl Sagan, the famous astronomer and writer, said that all children start out as scientists, full of curiosity and questions about the world around them. Kindergarten teachers aim to tap into that natural scientific potential. They do it by introducing lots of fun projects and experiments, taking trips outdoors to explore nature, and leading in-class discussions that help students discover simple but amazing facts about the world around them.

In general, three main areas are covered: physical science (the properties of objects and materials), life science (the characteristics of organisms and our environment), and earth and space science. In addition, teachers are expected to guide students in the basics of scientific inquiry — that is, to develop their skills of investigation and experimentation.

• Learning by Doing
  Five year olds have a hard time understanding abstract concepts, so touching and manipulating things helps them develop a more concrete understanding of scientific principles. Classroom science activities are often tied to typical kindergarten interests to keep kids engaged. Kindergarten students at Barre Town Middle and Elementary School in Vermont, for example, spend six weeks experimenting with force and motion in the school's science lab. Racetracks, gutters, and wooden ramps are set up throughout the lab. Students roll cars and balls of different sizes and weights down the various slopes, using blocks to change the steepness of the ramps. Varying degrees of force are applied with the help of straws, turkey-basters, and air pumps to move the balls or cars along.
• Exploring Nature
  Your child is apt to spend lots of time outside the classroom as well. Kindergarten science curriculums typically take advantage of children's curiosity about the world and use the outdoors as a natural laboratory. Your child may visit local parks and gardens, lakes, beaches, and ponds. A world of science knowledge can be found just in the school backyard, studying earthworms, trees, and plants. Students may bring insects or leaves back into the classroom and observe them, discuss them, and create pictures or projects.
  
  
• Talking Science
  Kindergarten isn't all field trips and fun, however. Educators say that the best way to train budding scientific thinkers is to help them verbalize what they've observed during an experiment or activity. When students hit a roadblock, good science teachers are careful not to provide the answers, but to guide them in finding the answers themselves. Helping students to convey scientific ideas verbally is also important since most 5 year olds don't yet have the fine motor skills necessary to express those ideas in writing.
  
  Encouraging children to think things through can yield big dividends when they experience the thrill of discovery. When kids think for themselves, learning is more likely to stick with them, and they're more motivated to try problem-solving again the future. That means they are likely to thrive in the trial-and-error world of science discovery and exploration.

 

India missed the discovery of water molecules on the Moon

Among all Indian civilian research agencies , ISRO is probably the organization that raises the most pride in India , is international recognition , its launch complex is used by many foreign countries and launch costs are very low. In addition, the ISRO has always allied other scientific fields to all its projects.
One of the best evidence of the confidence of Indians in their program and perhaps the failure to take insurance for the mission Chandrayaan 1 launched October 22, 2008 . On 14 November, he entered the final phase of its latest operational orbit at a distance of 100 km of the moon . The same day the Moon was launched Impact Probe ( MIP ) it struck the south pole of the moon. Chandrayaan contained 11 measurement instruments, five Indian, three from ESA (European Space Agency ) 2 and 1 Bulgarian American .
The most dramatic scientific discoveries have been made by the U.S. measuring instruments , the Moon Mineralogy Mapper ( M3) and Miniature Synthetic Aperture Radar ( Mini SAR ) . These measuring instruments have provided the first evidence to prove the presence of water molecules on the moon. The analysis of measurements collected by the M3 has been entrusted to Carle Pieters who published the results of the analysis in Science Magazine October 23, 2009 .
The results for the measures taken by the mini – SAR was submitted for publication in Geophysical Research Letters Spudis at December 22 , accepted February 22, 2010 and published March 31, 2010 . The Americans have acknowledged the role played by India in their discovery MIP (Moon Impact Probe ) also contained an instrument measuring the CHACE (Chandra ‘s altitudinal Composition Explorer ), during the 25 minute descent to the moon , this tool allows acquire data proving the existence of water molecules . A team of Indian scientists has submitted its publication in the journal Science in December 2008 which was dismissed in March 2009 . The authors then tried to publish this article in Nature in April 2009 which was ultimately dismissed in June 2009. Finally , in November 2009, a paper with as lead author R. Sridharan has been sent to a scientific journal which after minor revision January 2010 accepted its publication in February 2010.Cet article was finally available online in March 2010 and published in May 2010 . The timely publication of these articles have deprived India of the primacy of these discoveries …
ISRO should have become aware of the importance of these findings and publish a first draft of a newspaper article or on less prestigious or even on its website which would have given the primacy of discovery.

Guardian Bees Protect Kenyan Crops from Roaming Elephants

We’ve all probably heard the myth, made popular by Disney’s Dumbo, that elephants are afraid of mice. While that idea  may not be exactly true (video), elephants do make sure to avoid another tiny critter: bees. Knowing this, zoologists from the University of Oxford loaded fences in Kenya with beehives, in hopes of deterring roaming  African elephants from eating or trampling farmers’ crops. Now, two years later, the researchers are reporting in the African Journal of Ecology that the novel barriers are working wondrously and could be a viable option for protecting African croplands.

Debate: Should the State Take Severely Obese Children From Their Families?

What’s the News: Childhood obesity rates have escalated dramatically in recent years, in concert with nationwide explosion that has 34% of American adults falling into that category.
Now, scientists writing in the July 13 issue of the Journal of American Medical Association argue that much as feeding kids too little is considered child neglect, so should be feeding them too much. And if the former is grounds for removing them from their families, then the former may be as well.
As you can imagine, in the last 24 hours, numerous commentators have responded, and the ensuing debate touches on the causes of obesity and the difficulty of treating such a pervasive, devastating problem.?

China Energy Report

Description

This energy market report offers an incisive and reliable overview of the energy sector of the country. With a focus on oil, gas, coal and power markets, the report provides a complete picture of the country situation, dynamics, current issues and future prospects. With 2009 market data and continuous follow-up of markets news, this report brings clear and concise insights, to help tackle national energy challenges and opportunities.

Topics & Abstracts

Institutions & Energy Policy In 2010 the country created the National Energy Commission to better coordinate the various bodies involved in the energy sector ...

Energy Companies Energy companies active in the market (production, import, export, distribution, refineries, LNG terminals) in the oil, gas, coal and power sectors.

Energy Supply Resources: At the end of 2009 proven oil reserves were estimated at 2.8 Gt (compared to 2.2 Gt in 2008), representing a reserves/production ratio of 15 years ...

Prices Details of energy prices and taxes levels and evolution, by energy and by sector (oil, coal, power).

Consumption Primary consumption per capita remains low: approximately 1.7 toe, including 2400 kWh ...

Issues & Prospects The main priorities for the next few years are to improve the security of the country’s energy supply (to increase the production and, above all, diversify the supply sources ...

2009 Key data & Graphs Economic indicators: population, growth, etc. Supply indicators: reserves, capacity, production, external trade (per energy) Demand indicators: consumption per capita, total consumption, final consumption (per energy and per sector), energy security, energy efficiency, CO2 emissions Energy Balance : total and per energy

Science News

Bringing Sunlight Inside

May 1, 2007 — Photovoltaic panels have a new design: concentric circles that focus the sun's rays on miniaturized modules. Having the panels automatically sense sunlight and turn towards it also makes these high-tech solar cells more efficient.

Solar energy technology is advancing daily. Now, a new, high-tech system is working to efficiently harness the power of the sun and drastically reduce harmful carbon dioxide emissions.
Today, there are more than 76 million residential buildings and nearly 5 million commercial buildings in the United States. Combined, they use two-thirds of all electricity consumed in the United States and produce 35 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions.
Anna Dyson, an architectural scientist from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, is leading the way to make solar energy a real alternative to pollution-emitting fossil fuels. Her system contains rows of thin lenses that track the sun's movement. Sunlight floods each lens and is focused onto a postage-stamp sized, high-tech solar cell. Dyson says, "Really, what we want to do is be capturing and transferring that energy for usable means."
Conventional solar systems are about 14 percent efficient. This system has a combined heat and power efficiency of nearly 80 percent. "What they're doing is very efficiently capturing and transferring that light into electricity and the solar heat into hot water," Dyson explains.
"We basically have a system that can sense where the sun is at any time, and then the modules will basically be facing directly perpendicular to the incoming sun rays," she says. The lenses will be nestled between window panes and all of the pieces will be made of glass.
Michael Jensen, Ph.D., a mechanical engineer from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute says reducing dependency on fossil fuels is critical. Dr. Jensen explains, "We use fewer fossil fuels, then we are going to put less CO₂ into the atmosphere. We are going to decrease the effects on global warming."
This system will also lower the lighting needs of buildings, as it will provide usable light inside. It could supply as much as 50 percent of the energy needed for a building to operate. The system is set to be installed in the Center for Excellence and Environmental Energy Systems in Syracuse, New York, in 2008, and in the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City by 2009.

BACKGROUND: A team of different types of scientists at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has developed a radical new solar energy technology that promises to collect and distribute solar energy more efficiently. Rows, or stacks, of pivoting lenses incorporated into a glass building facade track the movement of the sun across the sky, focusing its rays onto high-tech solar cells. The new system uses high-tech solar-concentrator technology and advanced materials. The full-size prototype will be incorporated into a new building at The Center of Excellence in Syracuse, New York.
HOW IT WORKS: The key breakthrough is the miniaturized concentrator solar cell, which uses a lens with concentric grooves to focus collected light. Even though it is only the size of a postage stamp -- compared to the usual solar collector area that spans 4 x 4 feet -- the cell is much more efficient in collecting and reusing solar energy. The lens focuses incoming sunlight onto the solar cell. Microchannels at the base of the module transfer energy in the form of heat and light to wires contained inside. Each vertical stack of lenses rolls and tilts like a track blind, keeping the surface of the lenses faced to incoming sunlight as the sun changes position in the sky throughout the day. Incorporating these new cells into arrays could make solar energy an option that is competitive with other energy sources, reducing our dependency on fossil fuels.
ABOUT SOLAR CELLS: The solar cells on calculators and satellites are photovoltaic cells or modules: groups of cells electrically connected and packaged together. Photovoltaics convert sunlight directly into electricity. Photovoltaic cells are made of semiconductor materials like silicon. When light strikes the cell, a certain portion of the light is absorbed by the semiconductor material. The energy of the absorbed light knocks electrons in the semiconductor material loose, allowing them to flow freely. Photovoltaic cells also all have one or more electric fields that act to force the freed electrons to flow in a certain direction. This flow of electrons is a current. By placing metal contacts on the top and bottom of the photovoltaic cell, the current can be drawn off to be used. For example, the current can power a calculator. However, conventional photovoltaic panels made from silicon to provide electricity are expensive, and thus not cost-competitive with electricity from the power grid.