October 28 - November 30, 2024: Issue 636

Sunday Cartoons

Sunday cartoons and animations returns this year. This Issue: CGI Animated Short Film: "Cat and Moth" by India Barnardo

Boosting populations of the critically endangered eastern bristlebird  

November 2024
Working with Saving Our Species and Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, the NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service has released a total of 22 captive-bred eastern bristlebirds since January last year into the Northern Rivers region. 

In good news, the team has already seen signs that these captive-bred birds are bonding with the wild population. 

The captive breeding and release program aims to boost genetic diversity, to increase the species northern population which currently makes up just 50 of the estimated 2,500 individuals left. 

Conserving this threatened species requires more than just releasing birds into the wild, restoring their habitat is also an essential step and part of NPWS's commitment to Zero Extinctions in NSW Parks.

Habitat degradation and weeds have significantly impacted the species range, so fire management, monitoring and weed management are all part of the wider strategy to protect the grassy understorey that this species inhabits.  

Video: S. Curran/Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary

Winners Crowned at the Rip Curl GromSearch National Final 

Wednesday October 30, 2024

Australia’s finest young surfers hit up the new URBNSURF for the highly anticipated Rip Curl GromSearch National Final, presented by Sun Bum. The best junior athletes in the country battled it out in the perfect waves of URBNSURF Sydney to see who could win the prestigious title of GromSearch National Champion.

Adding to the excitement, U16 division champions Ben Zanatta Creagh and Rosie Richardson have earnt the incredible opportunity to represent Australia at the Rip Curl GromSearch International Final, to be held in Bali from November 13-17, 2024. They will surf against other young elite talent from across the global GromSearch platform with the chance to add their names to an unparalleled list of surfing legends who have won the title of International GromSearch Champion.

Two-time world champion Tyler Wright joined the crew in Sydney to witness the next generation of Australian surfing talent, and her presence seemed to inspire competitors and lift the performance level. “I’m so impressed with the level of surfing here. I remember loving the GromSearch events as a junior, but don’t remember the level of surfing being so high” commented Wright. “Everyone is ripping and the future of Australian surfing looks to be in great hands!”.

Ben Zanatta (Dee Why, NSW) stormed to a convincing win over a stacked field in the U16 boys division. Leading the qualifying round with a division high 9.50 (out of 10) point ride, he locked in an equal high 8.83 point ride in the final to hold off strong challenges from Jesse Fergusson (Coolangatta, Qld) and Lachlan Arghyros (Kingscliff, NSW). Zanatta commented “This is my last GromSearch event as I move out of the age division. My aim was to finish on a high and win the National title, so I’m stoked to achieve that and I can’t wait to represent Australia in Bali against the rest of the world.”

Rosie Richardson (Gold Coast, Qld) had a nervous wait in the final before eventually being crowned GromSearch National champion. After locking in an event high 9.67 as her first score, she had a relatively low 4.87 second score and needed to wait for other competitors to determine if she had enough. Late charges came from Alice Hodgson (Kiama, NSW) and Lani Cairncross (Illawarra, NSW), but Richardson had done enough with her exceptional first score and took home the tilt and the trip to Bali.

With Champions also crowned in the U14s and U12 divisions, the first GromSearch event in the URBNSURF Sydney pool was a great success and organizers are already in plans to repeat the occasion next year. The Sun Bum outstanding performance award was won by Maddison Kenchington & Tully Crumpton for their inspiring performance over the event.

The Rip Curl GromSearch series provides a fun and engaging environment for young surfers  from around the country to meet with friends, develop their skills whilst having fun along the journey. As athletes progress to finals the elite level of competition comes into play, with many previous GromSearch competitors going on to the WSL world tour.

The iconic Rip Curl GromSearch series is regarded as a launchpad for surfing superstars, with surfing royalty including Steph Gilmore, Gabriel Medina, Carissa Moore, Tyler Wright, Crosby and Griffin Colapinto, Caroline Marks, Jack Robinson, Filipe Toledo and many more coming through the series. The fact that GromSearch finalists have won the last 17 WSL Women’s World Titles and 5 of the 6 medallists at both of the last two Olympic Games is testament to the legacy of this International event.

For more information, visit here.

Results

Under 16 Boys
1st - Ben Zanatta Creagh (Dee Why, NSW)
2nd - Jesse Fergusson (Coolangatta, Qld)
3rd - Lachlan Argyros (Kingscliff, NSW)
4th - Ocean Lancaster (Merewether, NSW)
5th - Jai Nield (Coolangatta, Qld)
6th - Caden Francis (Coolangatta, Qld)

Under 16 Girls
1st - ​​Rosie Richardson (Gold Coast, Qld)
2nd - Alice Hodgson (Kiama Downs, NSW)
3rd - Lani Cairncross (Illawarra, NSW)
4th - Lucy Darragh (Gerringong, NSW)
5th - Savannah Rielly (Caloundra, Qld)
6th - Kanon Takahashi (Currumbin Alley, Qld)

Under 14 Boys
1st - Locana Cullen (Avalon, NSW)
2nd - Kade Kelly (Newcastle, NSW)
3rd - Luca Martin (Coolangatta, Qld)
4th - Jaggar Phillips (Narrabeen, NSW)
5th - Harvey Colivas (Long Reef, NSW)
6th - Kaoni Aguiar (Avalon, NSW)

Under 14 Girls
1st - Talia Tebb (Avoca, NSW)
2nd - Rose Holland (Gunnamatta, Vic)
3rd - Amelia Craike (Coolangatta, Qld)
4th - Navah Holmes (Currumbin Alley, Qld)
5th - Maddison Kenchington (Coolangatta, Qld)
6th - Evie Wilson (Noosa, Qld)

Under 12 Boys
1st - Thomas Bourke (Coolangatta, Qld))
2nd - Billy Daniel (Coolangatta, Qld)
3rd - Sonny Leong (Cronulla, NSW)
4th - Maverick Macgugan (Avalon, NSW)
5th - Tully Crompton (Currumbin Alley, Qld)
6th - Hayden Mee (Merewether, NSW)

Under 12 Girls
1st - Mila Grainger (Bungan, NSW)
2nd - Ily Fraser (Margaret River, WA)
3rd - Everly Morgan (Milton, NSW)
4th - Estella Carbonelli (Jan Juc, VIC)
5th - Evie Bawden (Noosa, Qld)
6th - Kobi Lana Partridge (Coolangatta, Qld)

Photo: 2X World Champion Tyler Wright with Junior competitors, PC Ben Hamilton

Photos: Surfing NSW

A good design award for an innovative design thinking challenge

With excitement building for the 2024 finals, the Department of Education’s Game Changer Challenge has continued on its award-winning way.

Having previously won the NSW Premier's Award in 2021 and the Mumbrella Publish Award in 2022, the Department’s Game Changer Challenge has added the 2024 Australian Good Design Gold Award in the Social Impact category to its stellar list of honours.

Open to public schools across the state, the Game Changer Challenge centres on discovering solutions to real-world, wicked problems by applying classroom learning.

A wicked problem is a social or cultural problem that’s difficult or impossible to solve, normally because of its complex and interconnected nature.

NSW Department of Education Secretary, Murat Dizdar, said the Game Changer Challenge 2023 was recognised for exceptional design and innovation,

“A massive team effort went into making the Game Changer Challenge 2023 the success it was, and it’s great to see this recognition for everyone’s hard work at the very highest level,” Mr Dizdar said.

“Game Changer is a unique event that changes as the needs of our students and schools change, and I think that is a real strength.”

Entries at this year’s Australian Good Design Awards were scrutinised by more than 80 international jurors, including designers, engineers, architects, and industry leaders.

The jury commended the department for the ongoing evolution and impact of the Game Changer Challenge.

“This program, which integrates design thinking to solve real-world problems, effectively fosters critical skills such as collaboration, empathy, and creativity in students and teachers across NSW public schools,” the jury said.

“The program’s expansion to include rural and remote communities while maintaining high-quality educational experiences is particularly impressive.

“The GCC is a testament to the power of innovative, inclusive educational design in preparing students for future challenges and opportunities.”

Entries were assessed against three core criteria: Good Design, Design Innovation, and Design Impact, ensuring that each winner demonstrated outstanding design quality and effectiveness.

Almost 400 schools participated in the Game Changer Challenge 2023, which was won by Innvisioneerz from The Ponds High School with their app that encourages young people to think about ergonomics.

The primary school champion was the Oyster Bay Public School team, The Crazy Collaborators, who came up with an app to alert pet owners when their animal has gone into a national park.

The Game Changer Challenge 2024 finals will be held at Parramatta over three days from the 5th to 7th November.


Finalists in the Game Changer Challenge 2023 gathered in Parramatta to battle it out for design-thinking glory. Photo: NSW Dept. of Education

Curious Kids: What causes windy weather?

The air doesn’t like to be under pressure just like us. The wind is the result of the air trying to escape from high pressure. Mami Kempe / The Conversation, CC BY-ND
Andrew B. Watkins, Australian Bureau of Meteorology

This is an article from Curious Kids, a series for children. The Conversation is asking kids to send in questions they’d like an expert to answer. All questions are welcome – serious, weird or wacky!


What causes windy weather? – Jake, aged 8, Melbourne.


Thank you for your great question, Jake.

Wind is just moving air, and air is a collection of different gases. It’s mostly one type of gas, called nitrogen, but also lots of others, including oxygen – which we need to live.

When air is under pressure, it starts to move – and that causes wind. I’ll explain what I mean by “under pressure”.

Imagine you are blowing up a balloon. As you blow more air into the balloon, the pressure builds inside. If the pressure gets too great, the balloon could pop because the air has nowhere to move.

Just like the balloon, we don’t like to be under pressure, either. Think of when your brother or sister or slightly annoying cousin gives you a great big bear hug. You feel pressure because you’re getting squeezed. Sometimes that can be nice, but when the squeezing gets too much the best way to get comfortable again is to break free and run. It’s the same with air: when it’s under pressure, it tries to escape.

When the air inside a balloon is under pressure and you take your fingers off the neck part of it, the air rushes out – often with a bit of an embarrassing farty noise. Well, that air rushing out is wind. (And, let’s be honest, it’s why another name for a fart is “breaking wind”.)

In the atmosphere, the same thing happens. When pressure builds up in one place, the air rushes to another place where there is less pressure.

But what is causing this pressure in the atmosphere?

Well, as the sun heats up the surface of the Earth, some areas get warmer and others stay cooler. On the whole globe, for instance, the North and South Poles are really cold. This is because sunbeams pass over the top, so not much sunlight actually hits the ground. Compare this to the equator, where temperatures are really warm, because the sunbeams are hitting it from directly above.

As you may know, warm air rises - just like when you see hot steam coming out the top of your kettle or a cooking pot at home.

When pressure builds up in one place, the air rushes to another place where there is less pressure. Mami Kempe / The Conversation, CC BY-ND

My old teacher used to say: “You don’t get something for nothing, Andrew!” What he meant was that if air goes up in one place, it must come down in another place. That other place will be where the air is not rising, and that’s normally where the cool areas are.

As this happens and the air comes down, it hits the ground and starts to build up. When that air piles up too much, that pile of air will collapse and spread out, just like air rushing out of a balloon.

That air will rush towards the area that doesn’t have a big mound of air built up, and that will usually be a warm place where the air is rising.

You can feel this happening at the beach in summer, where the sun heats up the sand more than the water. As heat builds up the air rises over the land and starts to fall over the ocean. Soon there is more air over the ocean than the land, and a breeze starts as that air pile collapses.

So, put simply: wind is just air moving from one place where there is high pressure to another place where there is low pressure (a smaller pile of air).

Often, that’s from where it is cooler to where it is hotter. And, thankfully, it rarely makes that farty sound.


Hello, curious kids! Have you got a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to us. They can:

* Email your question to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au
* Tell us on Twitter

CC BY-ND

Please tell us your name, age, and which city you live in. You can send an audio recording of your question too, if you want. Send as many questions as you like! We won’t be able to answer every question but we will do our best.The Conversation

Andrew B. Watkins, Manager of Long-range Forecast Services, Australian Bureau of Meteorology

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Curious Kids: How and why do magnets stick together?

Every magnet has two sides: a north pole and a south pole. Helena/flickr, CC BY-SA
Stephen G Bosi, University of New England

This is an article from Curious Kids, a series for children. The Conversation is asking kids to send in questions they’d like an expert to answer. All questions are welcome – serious, weird or wacky! You might also like the podcast Imagine This, a co-production between ABC KIDS listen and The Conversation, based on Curious Kids.


Hi my name is Dean and I am 7 years old. My question is: How and why do magnets stick together? – Dean, age 7, Vermont Sth.


Hi Dean!

This is a good question and a bit tricky to answer, but I’ll try my best.

Every magnet has two sides: a north pole and a south pole. We use these names because if you hang a magnet from a thread, the magnet’s north pole points (almost) towards the north direction.

This is because the Earth’s core (its centre) is a large, weak magnet. Your little, strong magnet lines up with Earth’s magnetic core, so it points north. That’s how a magnetic compass works.

If you sprinkle iron filings (a fine powder of iron) around a magnet, you can see an image of the magnetic field. from www.shutterstock.com

Magnets don’t always stick together.

If you hold two magnets the wrong way around, they push apart - they repel! In other words, if you hold two magnets together so that like-poles are close together (two norths OR two souths), they repel. Try it! It feels like the magnets are surrounded by an invisible rubber layer pushing them apart. That invisible layer is called a magnetic field.

Like-poles repel: We can use curvy arrows (called field lines) to draw the shape of the magnetic field around magnets. The arrows always start at the magnet’s north pole and point towards its south pole. When two like-poles point together, the arrows from the two magnets point in OPPOSITE directions and the field lines cannot join up. So the magnets will push apart (repel). Image credit: Author provided.

It’s only when you hold unlike-poles together (a north pointing to a south) that magnets stick together (they are attracted). Now, the magnetic field acts like a stretched rubber band pulling the magnets together. (Be careful; two strong magnets can pinch your skin).

Unlike-poles attract: When a north pole and south pole point together, the arrows point in the SAME direction so the field lines can join up and the magnets pull together (attract). Image credit: Author provided.

So, why do magnets attract or repel?

You have probably heard of energy. Energy is needed to create movement.

A car that’s sitting still will start to move when the petrol inside it burns. That’s because petrol contains stored-up energy which is released when it burns.

When this stored-up energy is released, some of it changes into movement energy. Scientists call this stored-up energy “potential energy” and call movement energy “kinetic energy”.

When you start running, it’s because energy stored in your food is released and some of it changes into movement energy.

What’s this got to do with magnets? Well, the magnetic field that surrounds all magnets contains stored-up energy. But there’s a way to change the amount of stored-up energy surrounding the magnet. And the way you change it will tell you which way the magnet will move.

A rule to remember

Everything in the universe follows a rule. I will tell you the rule in a moment, but first I have to say that it’s not easy to explain why the universe follows this rule without complicated mathematics. The best I can say is “that’s just how the universe behaves”. (I’m sorry. I don’t like answers like that either).

The rule is: wherever there is stored-up energy in an object (and the object is not tied down or stuck in place), then the object will be pushed in the direction that causes the stored-up energy to decrease. The stored-up energy will be reduced and replaced by movement energy.

So if two magnets are pointing with unlike-poles together (north pole to a south pole), then bringing them closer together decreases the energy stored up in the magnetic field. They will be pushed in the direction that decreases the amount of stored-up energy. That is, they are forced together (this is called attraction).

If two magnets are pointing with like-poles together (a south pole to a south pole OR north to north), then stored-up energy will decrease if they move apart.

So our rule says the magnets will be pushed in the direction that decreases the amount of stored-up energy. That is, they are forced apart (repelled).

I should also say that when dropped objects are attracted to Earth and fall down, it’s NOT because of magnetism. It’s because of gravity. Earth is also surrounded by a gravitational field which also contains stored up energy.

Unlike magnetism, gravity never repels because gravity only points one way. There are no north and south poles for gravity.

Can I keep taking stored-up energy from the magnetic field forever?

No.

Once two magnets stick together, you’ll need to put some stored-up energy back into the field by pulling the magnets apart again. You can’t get energy for nothing.

The energy needed to pull the magnets apart comes from you, and you get it from the food you eat. And the plants or animals you eat get their energy from other plants and animals, or from the Sun. All energy comes from somewhere.


Hello, curious kids! Have you got a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to us. They can:

* Email your question to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au
* Tell us on Twitter

CC BY-ND

Please tell us your name, age and which city you live in. You can send an audio recording of your question too, if you want. Send as many questions as you like! We won’t be able to answer every question but we will do our best.The Conversation

Stephen G Bosi, Senior Lecturer in Physics, University of New England

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Curious Kids: Where do dreams come from?

Scientists have a few ideas about where dreams come from – but nobody knows for sure. Flickr/Patrick, CC BY-SA
Shane Rogers, Edith Cowan University

This is an article from Curious Kids, a series for children. The Conversation is asking kids to send in questions they’d like an expert to answer. All questions are welcome: find out how to enter at the bottom. You might also like the podcast Imagine This, a co-production between ABC KIDS listen and The Conversation, based on Curious Kids.


Where do dreams come from? - Winifred, age 4, Selby, Victoria.

Hi Winifred. People have wondered about where dreams come from for a very long time. To be honest, scientists still don’t fully understand where dreams come from. But we have a few ideas.

Dreams are like imagining stuff while you are asleep, so you could say dreams come from your imagination. As you know, our imaginations can be very powerful – if you try imagining your favourite food, your mouth might even start watering.

Going to sleep is like putting a computer into “sleep” mode. The computer is not completely switched off, it just is not working as hard. When we go into sleep mode, we can rest and save our energy but we don’t fully turn ourselves off.

When we are asleep our brain does not switch off. It keeps working, but not as hard. But the part of the brain that helps us make decisions when we are awake? It is resting. That’s when our imagination can run wild.

What is she dreaming about? Flickr/Jon Huss, CC BY

Why do we dream?

People who have done research on why we dream have found most dreams people have tend to be about common stuff that happens in our lives (like playing with a friend).

Or we dream about stuff that might be important to us (like an upcoming party).

We think this is the same for animals who dream, too. Cats seem to commonly dream about chasing things, because that’s what cats think about doing a lot when they are awake.

Scientists have found out that when we dream about stuff, it might help us to remember that stuff better when we are awake. So maybe our dreams help us make stronger memories.

It’s a good idea for kids to get a good sleep each night to help you remember what you are learning about each day.

Solving problems

Other scientists think that maybe dreams help us to solve problems.

Let’s say you are learning how to ride a bike or a scooter. You might dream about riding. Maybe you are trying out different ways to ride, get the balance right, and not crash. It’s like you are practising while you are asleep. Then when you are awake, you might even have an idea about how to get better at riding.

Have you ever dreamed you were in a strange place? Flickr/marco, CC BY

But what about strange dreams? Well, it might be that our brain is just trying to make sense of some strange thoughts that come to us while we are asleep.

Maybe nightmares are the brain trying to replay scary experiences in an effort to make sense of them. Researchers have shown that some people might be able to make their bad dreams less scary if they imagine and write down different endings for their dreams and “practise” them before bed.

Some people think dreams might keep the mind busy and entertained, allowing the body to have a good rest.

The truth is, nobody really knows for sure where dreams come from. Maybe the answer will come to you in a dream.

Hello, curious kids! Have you got a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to us. You can:

* Email your question to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au
* Tell us on Twitter by tagging @ConversationEDU with the hashtag #curiouskids, or
* Tell us on Facebook

CC BY-ND

Please tell us your name, age and which city you live in. You can send an audio recording of your question too, if you want. Send as many questions as you like! We won’t be able to answer every question but we will do our best.The Conversation

Shane Rogers, Lecturer in Psychology, Edith Cowan University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Curious Kids: what makes a shooting star fall?

Make a wish! Shuttershock
Lisa Harvey-Smith, UNSW Sydney

Curious Kids is a series for children. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au You might also like the podcast Imagine This, a co-production between ABC KIDS listen and The Conversation, based on Curious Kids.


What makes a shooting star fall? – Katelyn, age 7, Adelaide.


Hi Katelyn,

Thanks for asking your fantastic question.

I’ll bet you’ve looked up at the night sky and seen lots of stars. They are beautiful aren’t they? Each star is a huge glowing ball of gas, just like the Sun. Stars look much smaller and fainter than our Sun because they are very far away.

Despite their name, shooting stars are not stars at all. They are tiny space adventurers who accidentally wander into our sky and get sucked toward us by the Earth’s gravity.

Let’s look at the journey of one of these adventurers. I’ll call her Gemma.

Once upon a time there was a tiny speck of dust — space dust — called Gemma. For many years she had spent her time wandering carefree through space and dancing around the planets and the stars.

One day, Gemma noticed a light in the distance. “What’s that?”, she wondered to herself. As she got closer, she saw a beautiful vision of a blue planet, hanging in space like a marble, covered with swirling colours of blue and white. “Wow! That’s the planet Earth,” she said to herself. “Just like I have read about in my books!” (In this story, specks of space dust read books just like you and me).

Gemma, is that you? Ralph Arvesen/Flickr, CC BY

After spending so long floating through the darkness of space, Gemma felt a strange attraction towards this beautiful new distraction.

It wasn’t just the fascination of Earth. It felt like an invisible force was bringing her slowly closer and closer to this bright globe of light.

The pull of gravity

As Gemma flew closer, she realised that she was being pulled towards the Earth by the force of gravity. “I’ve read about this in my books,” she thought, remembering that gravity is the same force that keeps humans standing on the Earth instead of floating away. The bigger the planet, the stronger its gravity.

As she neared the planet, Gemma could now see the outline of the oceans and the clouds and the sun glinting off the sparkling water.

Suddenly, she noticed the blackness of space was turning into a beautiful blue sky. She had entered the atmosphere of Earth! She had read that the atmosphere was a thick blanket of air, more than 100 kilometres thick that wraps around the surface of our planet and allows all the animals and people to breathe.

As she encountered the air, Gemma felt the chill of deep space subside. She started to feel as warm as a summer’s day. As she jostled and bounced through the air like an aeroplane, she started to glow with an energy and light that she had not felt before. “This must be friction, making me warm — just like the friction when I rub my hands together!” she thought to herself. A lot of friction can make things glow, and Gemma started to glow brighter and brighter.

As her speed increased, Gemma felt like she was on a roller coaster. “Wheeeeeeee!!” she called out with excitement, as she rocketed towards the blue planet, shining like a beautiful, bright star.

All the children on Earth looked up and were very excited to see Gemma, the shooting star from outer space, racing down to join them on Earth. She was just as excited to see them, and to have new friends on this beautiful planet Earth.

Next time you see a shooting star, say hello to Gemma!

Hello, curious kids! Have you got a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au

CC BY-ND

Please tell us your name, age and which city you live in. We won’t be able to answer every question but we will do our best.The Conversation

Lisa Harvey-Smith, Professor and Australian Government’s Women in STEM Ambassador, UNSW Sydney

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Curious Kids: when a snake sheds its skin, why isn’t it colourful?

A bush viper slithering out of its skin. Shutterstock
Damian Lettoof, Curtin University

When a snake sheds its skin, why isn’t it colourful? Yahya, aged eight

Thanks for the question Yahya!

Snakes come in all sorts of colours and patterns, especially in Australia. Our prettiest snakes include the Jan’s banded snake, the black-striped snake and the broad-headed snake (but this one is endangered, which means there aren’t very many broad-headed snakes left in the world).

You can see each of these snakes in the photos I’ve taken below.

Orange snake with a black stripe
The black-striped snake. Damian Lettoof, Author provided
Black and yellow snake
The endangered broad-headed snake. Damian Lettoof, Author provided
Orange and black striped snake
Jan’s banded snake. Damian Lettoof, Author provided

Snakes are well known for being able to shed their entire skin in one piece. But why isn’t the shed skin of a snake colourful, like the snake itself?

To answer your question, we should explore how snake skin and colour works.

All animals grow new skin over their lifetime. This replaces old skin, heals wounds and lets the animal grow bigger. Most animals, including humans, shed tiny pieces of dead skin all the time.

But snakes have to do it all at once, and this is because snake skin is quite different to a lot of other animals.

Snake skin is actually made up two main layers: the soft, colourful tissue (what scientists call the “dermis”), and hard, mostly see-through scales.

The dermis is filled with nerves, which is what we use to feel things touching us, as well as tiny grains called pigments, which is what gives skin its colour.

Scales sit on top of the snake’s soft dermis. Shutterstock

Scales sit on top of the snake’s soft dermis. These are much harder than the skin because scales are made of “keratin” — the same thing our fingernails and hair are made of.

In mammals, like us, the keratin grows from a single point and keeps on growing — think how your fingernails grow from the end of your finger. But in snakes, keratin grows all over, and is stuck on top of the soft dermis, protecting it like a thin shield.

While the keratin in snake (and lizard) scales is mostly see through, it also holds lots of tiny dark brownish black grains called “melanin”, which protects snakes from harmful sun rays. This means scales themselves are mainly either colourless or dark brownish black, depending on the snake.

But sometimes, like for Australian water pythons, the outer layer of scales can shine rainbow colours when the light hits it at the right angle.

The outer layer of some snake scales, like for Australian water pythons, can shine rainbow colours when the light hits it at the right angle. Wikimedia, CC BY-SA

So let’s say it’s time for a snake to shed its skin

First, it’ll grow a new layer of keratin scales underneath the old layer. When the new layer has finished growing, the snake rubs its body along rocks, plants and other rough things to peel the old layer of keratin off — often in a single, snaky piece.

Because all the brightly coloured pigments live in the soft dermis, and not the scales, the colour mainly stays on the snake, not the part it sheds.

But every so often, the shed skin can show dark brownish black stripes or blotches, because of melanin in the scales.

A little bit of melanin sometimes make the shed skin looks black, so it isn’t always see through. Shutterstock

Have you ever touched a snake’s shed skin?

Since it’s made up of both the hard keratin scales and a bit of the softer dermis, it feels both rough and soft. And because it’s so stretchy, it can be much longer than snake itself!


Damian Lettoof will be taking questions from kids at the Perth launch of our new Curious Kids picture book Why Do Tigers Have Whiskers, published by Thames and Hudson.

Venue: Paperbird Books

Date: July 10, at 10:30am

Price: Free, but space is limited and bookings are essential.

If you’re a Curious Kid with a question you’d like an expert to answer, ask an adult to send it to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.auThe Conversation

Damian Lettoof, PhD Candidate, Curtin University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Curious Kids: why do spiders have hairy legs?

There’s a very good reason for those leg hairs. Flickr/Hamish Irvine, CC BY-SA
Jonas Wolff, Macquarie University

Curious Kids is a series for children. You can send your question to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au. You might also like the podcast Imagine This, a co-production between ABC KIDS listen and The Conversation, based on Curious Kids.


Why do spiders have hairy legs? - Audrey, age 5, Fitzroy, Melbourne.

Good question, Audrey! Believe it or not, I have studied the hairy legs of spiders for years and can give you some definitive answers on this.

But before we talk about the spider’s fur, think about your very own hairs.

Why do we have hair?

First, there is the hair on your head, which protects you from the sun and rain. Then, there is smaller hair above your eyes – your eyebrows and eye lashes. These prevent dust from entering your eye.

And then have a closer look – you have all that very fine hair on your arms and legs, you can hardly see. What happens when you very, very gently touch this hair or blow at it? It tickles! This very fine body hair helps humans to feel if something is touching you.

It looks like this spider has a beard. Flickr/Thomas Shahan, CC BY

In spiders, it is quite similar. Their body hair helps them to feel if something is touching them. Say you took a paintbrush and gently touched a spider with it (don’t do this without an adult there, of course, because some spiders can be dangerous). This touch will make the spider’s hairs bend. The spider will feel that something big is touching it and probably think “Oh dear, there is something that wants to eat me!” and run off.

Like you, spiders have different types of hairs. But spiders can do much more cool things with their hair then we can with ours (except, maybe that we are superior in styling our hair in a cool fashion).

Spidey senses

Have you ever seen a spider with ears? Well, no (that would actually look funny!) That’s because spiders use hairs on their legs to listen! Sounds unbelievable, but that’s how it is.

Does a spider have a nose? I’ve never seen one, and I have seen lots and lots of spiders. To smell, spiders use hairs.

Does a spider have a tongue? Nope. They use – you guessed it – hairs!

So spiders can feel, listen, smell and taste with their hairy legs. Pretty cool, right?

Spiders can hear, taste and smell with those lovely leg hairs. Flickr/Kai Schreiber, CC BY

Some spiders can also use their hairs to grip onto a very flat surface – this is why you see spiders walking happily across a window, a ceiling or high up on a wall. (This is also how Spiderman does it, by the way).

Actually, not all spiders than can do that. Only the ones that have special Spiderman-hairs on their feet can do it. These Spiderman-hairs are tiny and have even tinier hairs on them – hairs on hairs. Scientists are trying to learn from these spiders and create Spiderman gloves. With such gloves you could climb up a skyscraper like a spider!

Show-off spiders

Spiders can be quite colourful. Do you know peacock spiders? Here is a picture of one:

The bright parts of a peacock spider are due to its colourful hairs. Flickr/Jurgen Otto, CC BY

The peacock spider’s colours come from special hairs on its legs and body and they are used to impress other peacock spider mates and find a partner. The peacock spider boy waves his coloured hairy legs in a funky dance to tell the spider girl, “I am the best guy you’ll ever find”. Such a show-off! Here’s how they look when they dance:

So you see, spiders need hairs for quite a lot of things in their life – and that is why they have hairy legs.

Hello, curious kids! Have you got a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to us. You can:

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Please tell us your name, age and which city you live in. You can send an audio recording of your question too, if you want. Send as many questions as you like! We won’t be able to answer every question but we will do our best.The Conversation

Jonas Wolff, Research Fellow in the Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

This Is A Taco - This is a squirrel

Published by Toadstools and Fairy Dust - more stories at the link

'The Magician's Hat' read by Alison Brie

More by Storyline online

Archive of millions of Historical Children’s Books All Digitised: Free to download or Read Online

Enter the 1: Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature here, where you can browse several categories, search for subjects, authors, titles, etc, see full-screen, zoomable images of book covers, download XML versions, and read all of the 2: over 6,000 books in the collection with comfortable reader views. 

Find 3: more classics in the collection, 800 Free eBooks for iPad, Kindle & Other Devices.


WilderQuest online fun

The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service is pleased to present the WilderQuest program for teachers, students and children.

The WilderQuest program includes a website and apps with game and video content, Ranger led tours and activities in national parks across NSW. It provides opportunities for families to experience nature, science and Aboriginal culture in classrooms, online, at events and in national parks. The Teacher portal and free primary school resources have been produced with support from our Environmental Trust partners.

Profile: Ingleside Riders Group

Ingleside Riders Group Inc. (IRG) is a not for profit incorporated association and is run solely by volunteers. It was formed in 2003 and provides a facility known as “Ingleside Equestrian Park” which is approximately 9 acres of land between Wattle St and McLean St, Ingleside. 
IRG has a licence agreement with the Minister of Education to use this land. This facility is very valuable as it is the only designated area solely for equestrian use in the Pittwater District.  IRG promotes equal rights and the respect of one another and our list of rules that all members must sign reflect this.
Profile: Pittwater Baseball Club

Their Mission: Share a community spirit through the joy of our children engaging in baseball.

National Geographic for Australian Kids

Find amazing facts about animals, science, history and geography, along with fun competitions, games and more. Visit National Geographic Kids today!

This week the National Geographic for Kids has launched a new free digital resource platform called NatGeo@Home to entertain and educate children affected by school closures.

The three main categories of content on the NatGeo@Home site aim to educate, inspire and entertain. For parents and teachers, there are also separate resources and lesson plans covering everything from getting to grips with Google Earth to learning to label the geological features of the ocean.

For the main Australian National Geographic for Kids, visit: www.natgeokids.com/au

For the National Geographic at Home site, visit:

LEGO AT THE LIBRARY

Mona Vale Library runs a Lego club on the first Sunday of each month from 2pm to 4pm. The club is open to children aged between seven and twelve years of age, with younger children welcome with parental supervision. If you are interested in attending a Lego at the Library session contact the library on 9970 1622 or book in person at the library, 1 Park Street, Mona Vale.

Children's Storytime at Mona Vale LibraryMona Vale Library offers storytime for pre-school children every week during school terms. Children and their carers come and participate in a fun sing-a-long with our story teller as well as listen to several stories in each session, followed by some craft.  

Storytime is held in the Pelican Room of the library in front of the service desk. Storytime is free and no bookings are required. 

Storytime Sessions: Tuesdays  10.00am - 11.00am - Wednesdays  10.00am - 11.00am  - Thursdays  10.00am - 11.00am

Profile: Avalon Soccer Club
Avalon Soccer Club is an amateur club situated at the northern end of Sydney’s Northern Beaches. As a club we pride ourselves on our friendly, family club environment. The club is comprised of over a thousand players aged from 5  who enjoy playing the beautiful game at a variety of levels and is entirely run by a group of dedicated volunteers. 
Avalon Bilgola Amateur Swimming Club Profile

We swim at Bilgola rock pool on Saturday mornings (8:45am till 11:30am). Our season runs between October and March

Profile Bayview Yacht Racing Association (BYRA)

Website: www.byra.org.au

BYRA has a passion for sharing the great waters of Pittwater and a love of sailing with everyone aged 8 to 80 or over!

 Mona Vale Mountain Cub Scouts



Find out more about all the fun you can have at Mona Vale Mountain Cub Scouts Profile
– 

our Profile pages aren’t just about those who can tell you about Pittwater before you were born, they’re also about great clubs and activities that you too can get involved in!