Unicorn Fly Discovered

About 100 million years ago there were dinosaurs. But they weren't the only animals that roamed the planet. Recently, scientist have found a three horned insect about the size of a fly. They call this insect a unicorn fly, but the scientific term for this creature is Cascoplecia insolitis. And because of it's bizarreness, scientist have placed it in a new insect family. The bug has small razor teeth that scientist have believed that it's for munching up pollen and that this insect is a pollen collector. It has most of the characteristics of a fly. A couple of this animals characteristics are that it has long legs, and a spiral antenna. SCientist have found it in an ember so since the animal kept its natural shape the scientists can look at the body parts and do experiments on it to find out more stuff about it.

My link:
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/48836/description/Unicorn_fly_of_the_Cretaceous

The Scientific Method

In our science class, we have been learning about the scientific method. The first step of the scientific method is to ask a question. This basically means to wonder about what you're doing. The second step of the scientific method is to do research. This means to find out things about your topic. The third step of the scientific method is to construct a hypothesis. This means to make an educated guess about your topic. The fourth step of the scientific method is to test with an experiment. This means to test your notes and see if your hypothesis is correct. The fifth step of the scientific method is to analyze your results. This means to check and see if your results are correct. The sixth step of the scientific method is to draw a conclusion. This means to find out the answer. The seventh step of the scientific method is to see if your final answer is true or false. If your answer is true then you report your results. But if your answer is false, then you have to try again. These are the steps of the scientific method that we learned in our science class.

Why Flamingos Stand on One Leg

Scientists have watched flamingos daily and they've found out that when sleeping, flamingos stand on one leg. But the question remains, why? Matthew Anderson, came up with two theories, one was that sanding on one leg would reduce muscle fatigue and they would be able to run away if a predator came. The second theory was that it maintained the body temperature. So Anderson wanted to test these theories so he watched flamingos over a period of time to see what would happen. As Anderson watched the flamingos and he realized that flamingos run faster when both of their legs are out. So that eliminated one of his theories. So he decided to test the other theory, so he watched flamingos in cool and hot weather and it seems that in hot weather, the flamingos legs are out except for when they are in water, because water is a major heat loss for flamingos. But in cool or cold weather, they stand on one leg to conserve body heat. So in the end, Anderson figured out what the problem was in flamingo stance, and it was thermoregulation.


http://www.livescience.com/animals/090917-flamingos-one-leg.html

Plasticity Lab

In our science class, we did a lab about the structer of the earths plasticity. In this lab, we mixed five teaspoons of cornstarch and twenty milliliters of water together. The we added a couple of drops of food coloring in the mixture and stirred untill hard. We eventually got a solid and a liquid, because it was a solid when you applied pressure to it such as the crust applying pressure to the mantle. And when you let it be, it would melt into goo. And when you hit it or pushed your finger in fast, it would hurt your hand, but when you pushed your finger in slowly, your finger would melt into it. This mixture is similar to the earth's mantle, because, like the mantle it is like an iron liquid.

October Sky

In our unit, we watched a movie called October Sky. In this movie, as Homer {the main character} watches a satellite fly across the sky, he decides that he will build a rocket. Next Homer get his friends to help him and then they get some supplies from his dad's Friend who's a welder. Next he builds his rocket. Unfortunately, his flight didn't go so well. Once his dad found out about this, he threw away all of Homers rocket stuff. But that didn't stop Homer, Homer got all of his stuff and found a new spot to launch his rocket, so it would not hit anything. And after several more weeks and tries to build his rocket, Homer finally got it right. And his first successful rocket flight will be remembered throughout history for the people who saw it.

Response Blog

I learned about Cystic Fibrosis on skater121296 blog. This blog is very informational and colorful. Cystic Fibrosis is a genetic disorder that affects the lungs and the skin. A couple of the symptoms could be very salty skin and lung infections. About 30,000 people in the United States have Cystic Fibrosis, and about 70,000 have it in the world. Children and adolescence can't get it so only adults and old teens can get it. People with this disease used to die young, but now with the treatments that doctors have made, some people can live really old, but the average age of death is about 37. What makes this disease a disease, is the mutated gene in the cells. So far there is no known cure to stop Cystic Fibrosis, but with nutrition and an active lifestyle, they can live longer. I hope that the doctors can find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis. All this information and more, I got from The blog of skater121296.

I got this information at skater121296's blog:
http://www.skater121296.blogspot.com/

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, is a very rare disease. This disease was discovered in 1861, and since then, no doctors have found a cure. The symptoms of this disease could be muscle weakness, awkward walking, frequent falls, and difficulties with motor skills, such as jumping. This disease could lead to death but only when you have it in your mid thirties, or early teens. The possibility of getting this disease, is about 1 in 3,500, but only in , males because females can't get it. In the "MOLECULAR" level, stem cells are absent, and that's what causes this disease. Everyone in the world should know that there could be a cure, because doctors are doing stem cell research.

This is were I got my information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchenne_muscular_dystrophy