Sunday, February 23, 2014

What Killed the Dinosaurs?

What Killed the Dinosaurs?

     Introduction

Dinosaurs lived during the Mesozoic era which began 245 million years ago. It lasted for about 180 million years. It was also known by the Age of the Reptiles. The era was divided by three eras. The Triassic, Jurassic, and the Cretaceous. The Triassic period was when all the continents on Earth were still connected. The super continent was called Pangaea. During the Triassic period(245 - 208 million years ago), Pangaea started breaking apart. Many reptiles, frogs, turtles, and crocodiles existed during it, but the dinosaurs didn't appear until the late Triassic. The first dinosaurs were lightly built, small dinosaurs. The first mammals formed during the Triassic period. The period ended with MASS EXTINCTION. During the extinction, wiped out entire order of plants and animals. But some still survived, which brings us to the Jurassic period. The Jurassic period started 208 million years ago and ended 146 million years ago. This was when the more larger dinosaurs started to form. This was period was known as the flourishing period of the dinosaurs. Birdlike dinosaurs first appeared during the Jurassic. But extinction also brought an end to the Jurassic, but it wasn't as large as the Triassic. At the end of the Jurassic, the Cretaceous period had began(146 to 65 million years ago). Pangaea had started breaking down into smaller pieces and had partially spread apart. Wide varieties of dinosaurs roamed and mammals had began to flourish. Birds had appeared and had spread all over the globe. But, again major extinction had struck the dinosaurs. The second largest extinction of all time brought an end to the age of the Reptiles, and the start of the age of the Mammals. But, extinction of the dinosaur species had brought an end to all three periods. But what had caused it? This question continues to rack the minds of all archaeologists around the globe.

   Archaeologists have many ideas of what had brought an end to the age of the dinosaurs. The most popular theory is the Asteroid theory. Many people think that a large asteroid had collided with Earth and a huge cloud of dust had blocked out the sun. Because many animals and plants need sunlight to survive, the change in climate had impacted the dinosaurs and had killed them.

  Another theory is Volcanic activity. Scientists believe that volcanoes had pumped so much ash into the air that it had blocked out the sun. Again, because of the sudden climate change, dinosaurs couldn't adapt fast enough and had become extinct.

  Some scientists believe that an small ice age had happened at the end of the Cretaceous. The sudden drop in temperature had negatively impacted the dinosaurs and had caused them extinction.

  My Opinion

Dinosaurs were abducted by aliens. Only reasonable explanation for the "extinction" of them. Aliens had taken them and possibly could have experimented on them. Fossils? While the aliens were taking the dinosaurs, the ones who either weren't taken, or "fought back" had been wiped out. This is my opinion.

Top 5 Dinosaur Extinction Theories

1. Asteroid Theory - Giant asteroid had collided with Earth and raised a cloud of dust and debris. The sun could not shine through so the dinosaurs and plants died.                                     

            

2. Volcanic Theory - Volcanoes puffed out so much smoke and ash, it blocked out the sun. The dinosaurs and plants did not have any sunlight so they died.

3. Ice Age Theory - A sudden ice age had killed the dinosaurs because of the sudden temperature type. 

 

4. Disease - A deadly disease had spread from dinosaur to dinosaur. When a dinosaur died, a scavenger had taken the disease by eating the meat of the dead dinosaur.

     

5.  Food Chain Imbalance - Herbivores ate plants and Carnivores ate meat. If the plants died out, the herbivores would die, and the carnivores would also die.

   

Top 5 Carnivores

1. Spinosaurus -

Spinosaurus was the biggest of all the carnivorous dinosaurs, larger than Tyrannosaurus and Giganotosaurus. It lived during the middle of the Cretaceous Period about 112 million to 97 million years ago, roaming the swamps of North Africa.

  

Giganotosaurus

2. Giganotosaurus was one of the largest meat-eating dinosaurs. It roamed the swamp lands of South America at the end of the Mesozoic Era, about 97 million years ago.

    

3. Tyrannosaurus Rex - 

Tyrannosaurus rex was a fierce carnivore. Scientists believe this powerful predator could eat up to 500 pounds (230 kilograms) of meat in one bite.

    


4. Carcharodontosaurus -

 Carcharodontosaurus was a carnivore, with enormous jaws and long, serrated teeth up to eight inches long.

      

5.  Carnotaurus -

Carnotaurus was a large predatory dinosaur that lived in South America during the Late Cretaceous Period. They had very small hands as well as horns above their eyes, and a short snout

 

Spinosaurus was the biggest of all the carnivorous dinosaurs, larger than Tyrannosaurus and Giganotosaurus. It lived during the middle of the Cretaceous Period about 112 million to 97 million years ago, roaming the swamps of North Africa.

  Conclusion 

There are many theories on how dinosaurs became extinct, many of them are actually true and are possible. I think that aliens abducted some and wiped out the rest. But of course, no one else seems to think that. Disease, Asteroid, Volcanoes, and Ice Age are the most common and popular explanations. Even though scientists aren't sure exactly what killed dinosaurs, they have many possible theories.


Challenge

What do you think caused dinosaur extinction? List your possible theories in the comments section.



Sunday, February 2, 2014

Why is the Sky Blue?

When you look into the sky you see clouds, planes, the moon, and a lot of other things. But what you don't see is the solar system. When you learn about space in school you see a dark, endless space filled with stars, planets, and moons. But during the day when you are playing outside, you don't see a dark space, you just see blue. But why? Why is the sky blue? Because of light. When you look at an object, such as a blue yoga ball, the yoga ball is reflecting blue wavelengths and absorbing all the other colors, so you only see blue. So how does the air reflect blue? The Earth's atmosphere is filled with gas molecules. The  colors with longer wavelengths go through, such as red, yellow, and orange. Blue and Violet wavelengths are absorbed by the gas molecules and spread around the sky. So when you look at the sky, you see blue.

My Opinion

When I was in kindergarten and 1st grade, the teachers, parents, and other adults always used to tell me that the sky was blue because majority of the Earth is ocean - which is blue - so the blue reflects off the ocean and into the sky. NOW I KNOW THAT THEY WERE WRONG AND I WAS RIGHT TO NOT LISTEN AND CARE. I always knew that there must be some other explanation, and I was right. SCIENCE!
 

Top 10 List

Top 10 Popular Car Colors





10. Other Colors 

1 percent of people around the world prefer secondary colors.

 

 

  9.  Gold and Yellow                                               

1 percent of the people around the world prefer gold or yellow

 

 

8.   Green


2 percent of the people around the world prefer green


7.   Brown 

 3 percent of the people around the world prefer brown.



 

6.  Blue 

5 percent of the people around the world prefer blue.



5. Red

6 percent of the people around the world prefer red.



4. White 

  16 percent of the people around the world prefer white.




3. Gray

16 percent of the people around the world prefer gray.




 

2. Black

24 percent of the people around the world prefer black.




 

1. Silver

36 percent of the people around the world prefer silver

 

 

 

 

Conclusion

 So now you know why the sky is blue. It is not because the ocean reflects blue off its surface. It's not because the moon reflects blue sunlight off of it, or any other crazy story. The sky is blue because the blue and violet  wave lengths are absorbed and spread out by the air molecules.  Thus, making the sky blue.

In the comment section below, let me know what your favorite color is.

Can Fortune Cookies really tell the future

Can Fortune Cookies REALLY  the future?


 Introduction- What are fortune cookies?

Fortune cookies are uniquely-shaped, crisp cookies made from a simple recipe of flour, sugar, oil and either vanilla or almond flavoring. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/can-fortune-cookies-predict-the-future/#sthash.a4zRPPzC.dpuf
 Fortune cookies are uniquely shaped cookies that are simply made with flour. sugar, oil, and either vanilla or almond flavoring. Each cookie has a slip of paper with a prediction of the future, a Chinese word or phrase, or a list of lucky numbers.
 Even though fortune cookies are found in almost every Chinese restaurant, in China, you won't see them very often, if not at all. In fact, the Chinese weren't even the ones who created fortune cookies.
 The debate of who created fortune cookies still lives on, with many people who are creating new theories for it.
 One belief is that a Japanese immigrant named Makato Hagiwara first served "his" fortune cookies as a way to say thank you to the customers in the late 1890s to the early 1900s. Others clain that the cookie was invented in 1918, by David Jung, a Chinese immigrant that lived in Los Angeles who founded the Hong Kong Noodle Company. Jung was scared about worried about the homeless people living near his shop, so he decided to give the fortune cookies for free to them with each slip of paper having an encouraging phrase from the bible on it.
 Some Japanese people believe that the fortune cookie was invented in the 19th century in Kyoto, Japan. Cracker-like cookies called tsujiura senbei were very known throughout Kyoto. Though they were larger and darker than the modern-day fortune cookies, they still had a "fortune" contained inside.
 But do fortune cookies really tell the future? Of course........they don't. The fortune contained inside your cookie is randomly placed in cookies by machines. The slip of paper is written on by millions of workers who print the "inspirational fortunes" on the cookie. If your fortune comes true, it's just a coincidence. They aren't actually fortune tellers.

My Opinion

Fortune's inside fortune cookies are fake. Don't let any cartoon or some adult that treats you like your 6 tell you otherwise. They are just made by machines and people who have to sit in one chair and type "inspirations" on paper for 8 hours. Even if it does come true, it's just a coincidence. Don't let them GET INSIDE YOUR HEAD.

Top 10 list

Top 10 WORST Fortune Cookie Fortunes EVER


1.                                

That is NOT a fortune. That is more of a "Heads Up".




2.                               

That is also not a fortune. That sounds more like a line from a weight loss program.







3.              

Soooooo? Cavemen ate grass, tree bark, and nuts.




4.          

Is this what happens when the people who type this get bored?





5.       

I thought fortune cookies were supposed to tell the future.



6.   

If I had a nickel every time someone had said that to me........



7.  Sure, you just go to veins and then.........











8.  

But my parents and teachers say that you have to eat vegetables and fruits. I thought fortune cookies were supposed to give people good advice.






9.                                    

Aren't fortune cookies supposed to tell people something they don't know?






10.   

Sorry, fortune cookies are not real. This is just a "coincidence."


Conclusion

So, what have we learned today? FORTUNE COOKIES ARE NOT REAL. They are just made from people who are paid $6 and hour, 8 hours a day, and work in a factory. The fortunes they provide are just for fun and aren't real. The ones that do come true are a coincidence. And for the people who do are just superstitious. The other day I overheard a conversation between 2 men and they were arguing about whether fortune cookies are real and who invented them. It doesn't matter who created them, it matters who  thinks they are fake.
Some Japanese people believe fortune cookies got their start as early as the 19th century in Kyoto, Japan. Cracker-like cookies — called tsujiura senbei — were popular in Kyoto. They were larger and darker than modern fortune cookies, but they did contain a fortune tucked into the bend of the cookie. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/can-fortune-cookies-predict-the-future/#sthash.a4zRPPzC.dpuf

Fortune cookies are uniquely-shaped, crisp cookies made from a simple recipe of flour, sugar, oil and either vanilla or almond flavoring. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/can-fortune-cookies-predict-the-future/#sthash.a4zRPPzC.dpuf
Fortune cookies are uniquely-shaped, crisp cookies made from a simple recipe of flour, sugar, oil and either vanilla or almond flavoring. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/can-fortune-cookies-predict-the-future/#sthash.a4zRPPzC.dpuf
Fortune cookies are uniquely-shaped, crisp cookies made from a simple recipe of flour, sugar, oil and either vanilla or almond flavoring. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/can-fortune-cookies-predict-the-future/#sthash.5kDEK4hh.dpuf
Fortune cookies are uniquely-shaped, crisp cookies made from a simple recipe of flour, sugar, oil and either vanilla or almond flavoring. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/can-fortune-cookies-predict-the-future/#sthash.5kDEK4hh.dpuf

Monday, January 20, 2014

Fact or Fiction? Are Aliens Really REAL?

Is there life on other planets? Are aliens real? This is the question that many of kids, scientists and astronomers still have no answer today. Some of the most known movies are based off of aliens, like E.T.: The Extra - Terrestrial. Even without evidence, some people believe that aliens still exist. Many of these people still wonder, do aliens visit Earth? Would they fly in flying saucers, UFO's, or in something more advanced. Something more sophisticated for humans to understand. But how would we know if we've actually seen one? What if their "spacecrafts" can transform into air crafts that we can identify. Or maybe they can become invisible. Who knows? But here is the real question, are our rules like theirs? Do physics apply to them too? Many people believe that they have sighted aliens UFO, but no one knows exactly what they saw. From unexplained lights in the sky or unidentified objects.In June 1947, private pilot Kenneth Arnold reported seeing several “flying saucers” or “flying discs.” Around the same time, the United States military recovered debris from a highly-classified experimental high-altitude surveillance balloon that crashed near Roswell, New Mexico. Despite the military’s explanations, many people believed the “Roswell UFO Incident” involved the crash-landing of an alien spacecraft.These events attracted the interest of many scientists. Although some percentage of UFO sightings have remained unexplained, most of them have been explained to be missiles, kites, or weather balloons. No matter how many people believe in aliens, U.S government says that “no evidence that any life exists outside our planet, or that an extraterrestrial presence has contacted or engaged any member of the human race.”

My Opinion

Aliens are REAL, nothing can change my mind. Maybe some cold hard explanations, but that hasn't been made yet. For aliens to be real, there is about a 60% chance. There many stars in our universe and research has shown that about 50% of them harbor planets. Also, in the Milky Way alone, there are about 1 trillion planets. Seth Shostak, a senior astronomer at the SETI Institute says,"Surely some of them have undergone what Earth has undergone and developed life, and eventually what we call sentient life." Many other scientists believe that most planets cannot support human life or any life, but our knowledge of adaption is limited to humans. What if other life forms do not need oxygen to survive, or water? But all in all, i think aliens are real.


Top 10 Planets Similar to Earth


10. K01-314.02
Distance from Earth - 298.4 light years
Orbital Period-23.1 days
Surface Temperature-125*F
Earth Similarity index - 90%

9. K01- 784.01
Distance from Earth - 1068
Orbit period - 19.3 days
Surface Temperature - 122*F

8.K01 - 812.03
Distance from Earth - 1394.4 light years
Orbit period - 46.2
Surface Temperature - 3*F
Earth similarity index - 90%

7. K01-1422.02
Distance from Earth - 1046.9
Orbital Period - 19.9
Surface Temperature - 7*F
Earth Similarity Index - 90%

6.K01-1361.01
Distance from Earth - 799.6 light years
Orbital Speed - 59.9
Surface Temperature - 46*F
Earth similarity Index - 90%

5. K01-899.03
Distance from Earth - 740 light years
Orbital speed - 15.4
Surface Temperature 84*F
Earth Similarity Index - 93%

4.K01-1686.01
Distance from Earth -1004.3
Orbital Speed - 56.9
Surface Temperature - 66*F
Earth similarity Index - 93%

3.K01-947.01
Distance from Earth - 796.8
Orbital Speed - 28.6 days
Surface Temperature - 48*F
Earth Similarity Index - 95%

2. K01-736.01
Distance from Earth - 1389.3
Orbital Speed - 18.8
Surface Temperature - 84*F
Earth similarity Index - 96%

1.K01-494.01
Distance from Earth - 1242
Orbital period - 25.7
Surface Temperature - 57*F
Earth similarity Index - 99%   


Conclusion

So, from decades of research, astronomers can conclude that alien life may exist. Although they may not exist in our galaxy, we can predict that alien life form may exist somewhere else in the universe.



Challenge

What planet do you think was most similar to Earth?
http://www.educatinghumanity.com/2012/03/ten-alien-planets-most-similar-to-earth.html
Click on the link to see some of the top planets that are similar to Earth. Comment your answers down below.
“no evidence that any life exists outside our planet, or that an extraterrestrial presence has contacted or engaged any member of the human race.” - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/do-you-believe-in-ufos/#sthash.qBLNY8Kx.dpuf
“no evidence that any life exists outside our planet, or that an extraterrestrial presence has contacted or engaged any member of the human race.” - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/do-you-believe-in-ufos/#sthash.qBLNY8Kx.dpuf
In June 1947, private pilot Kenneth Arnold reported seeing several “flying saucers” or “flying discs.” Around the same time, the United States military recovered debris from a highly-classified experimental high-altitude surveillance balloon that crashed near Roswell, New Mexico. Despite the military’s explanations, many people believed the “Roswell UFO Incident” involved the crash-landing of an alien spacecraft. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/do-you-believe-in-ufos/#sthash.qBLNY8Kx.dpuf
In June 1947, private pilot Kenneth Arnold reported seeing several “flying saucers” or “flying discs.” Around the same time, the United States military recovered debris from a highly-classified experimental high-altitude surveillance balloon that crashed near Roswell, New Mexico. Despite the military’s explanations, many people believed the “Roswell UFO Incident” involved the crash-landing of an alien spacecraft. - See more at: http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/do-you-believe-in-ufos/#sthash.qBLNY8Kx.dpuf

Monday, December 30, 2013

New York City's NBA teams struggle to get on track

   New York's two NBA teams, the New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets are struggling to get on track. Both teams started out the first eleven games this season with a track record of 3-8. With both teams dealing with injuries and unhappy fans, the Nets stand at 12th place in the Eastern Conference, and the Knicks at 14th.

  The Knicks have lost six straight games at home. The injuries to Carmelo Anthony, Raymond Felton and Pablo Prigioni have not helped the Knicks case of return. Knicks coach Mike Woodson is undergoing problems too. The unhappy Knicks fans are suggesting and chanting that he should be fired. Woodson said before the Knicks against Raptors game,"We have not had a full deck. I’m talking about key guys that have been out. I’m just anxious to see where we are. Because I know if we’ve got a full deck, we’ve got a chance to win basketball games. I truly believe that.” The loss to Toronto gave a little support to his words. Without his 3 stars, shooting guard Iman Shumpert and small forward Metta Worldpeace provided much. The Knicks led by as much as 12 in the third, but the Raptors charged back with ease in the fourth. Without Anthony to go to down the stretch, the offense stalled. Knicks Center Tyson Chandler said,"I felt like we had the game in control,We let it dwindle away in the fourth quarter. It’s pretty disheartening.”Woodson said that the Knicks shorthanded roster was a key factor to the loss. Without Carmelo leading the offense and Prigioni and Felton racking up assists and making plays the Knicks couldn't fight back in the fourth quarter. The offense shot 5 of 19 in the fourth, giving up the lead and the game to Toronto.

  The Nets are having similar problems. With Nets center Brook Lopez out for the season and Boston imports Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett not hitting the ground running, the Nets are in trouble.
No one expected KG and  "The Truth" to put up 50 points per game and play in their prime..
But they haven't met any expectations. They're not showing their expected value and play how they played on the Boston Celtics. When Pierce and Garnett were on the Celtics, they averaged 18.57 points (Pierce) and 14.8 points (Kevin Garnett). This season they average 12.6 points (Paul Pierce) and 6.6 points (Kevin Garnett). With Pierce at age 36 and KG at age 37, they cannot expect so much for them. Because they're getting older, they're not as athletic as they used to be. Nets shooting guard Joe Johnson and Nets point guard Deron Williams lost their leadership roles to the Boston players, so they cannot help.

My Opinion

  I think that the Knicks should trade some of their players, and the Nets should give more minutes in the game to their bench players. The knicks aren't doing well because of injuries to their players and because they don't have the correct pieces. Carmelo Anthony is a scorer, Raymond Felton is the passer, J.R Smith, doesn't fit, Amare Stoudemire is too bad, and Tyson Chandler fits. J.R Smith  should be traded or should develop a passing skill and step down a little bit. J.R and Carmelo fight to be the star player and take the last shot. If J.R steps down and gives Carmelo some space, Melo can grow. Amare Stoudemire doesn't have talent anymore. He's been playing forever and his prime years ended. If they could get rid of him and get some one younger and more healthier. As for the Nets, they cannot rely on KG and Paul Pierce any more. If they want to start winning again they need to give their bench players more minutes. Bring KG and "The truth" out of the spotlight and give it to the younger guys. Deron Williams and Joe Johnson had a good thing going before the Celtic players came over. If they can give them the role again, they can make something happen and bring out the best in KG and Paul.


Top 10 Worst Teams

1. 1973 Philadelphia 76ers went 9-73.

 Points Per Game- 104.1  (13th of 17th)
Coaches- Roy Rubin and Kevin Loughery




2. 1993 Dallas Mavericks went 11-71

PPG- 95.1 (27th of 27)

Coach- Quinn Bucker

 

 3. 1987 Los Angeles Clippers went 12-70 

 PPG- 98.8 (23rd of 23)

                                                 Coach- Gene Shue

 

 

4. 2005 Atlanta Hawks went 13-69 

 PPG - 97.2 ( 30th of 30)

Coach - Mike Woodson

 

 

 

  5. 1983 Houston Rockets went 14-68

PPG - 110.6 ( 10th of 23 )

Coach - Bill Fitch




6. 1971 Cleveland Cavaliers went 15-67

 PPG - 102.1 ( 17th of 17 )

Coach - Bill Fitch

 

 

 

 

7.  1969 Phoenix Suns went 16-66 

 PPG - 111.7 ( 8th of 14 ) 

Coach - Red Kerr

 

 

 8. 1990 New Jersey Nets went 17-65 

 PPG - 102.9 ( 19th of 27 )

 Coach - Bill Fitch

 

 

9. 1972 Portland Trailblazers went 18-64

 PPG - 106.8

Coach - Rolland Todd and Stu Inman

 

 

 

 

10.  2005 New Orleans Hornets went 18-64

 PPG - 88.4 ( 30th of 30 )

Coach - Byron Scott

 

 

 

 

Conclusion

  The Knicks and the Nets are having a rough season due to injuries and problems. But it is still early in the season. They still have a chance to bring it all together. Mike Woodson (NY Knicks Coach) has excuses why the Knicks are sucking this year, but if he gets the Knicks and Jason Kidd gets the Nets back on track, they might have a chance on getting into the playoffs and winning the Championships. .