FOR KIDS: Chimp’s Gift For Numbers - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/342123/title/FOR_KIDS...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/342123

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Chimp’s gift for numbers
Translating numbers into colors may explain an animal’s apparent
memory trick

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Friday, July 6th, 2012

ENLARGE
Chimp proves a whiz at a number memory game.
T. Matsuzawa, Primate Research Institute

Whatever you do, don’t challenge a chimpanzee named Ayumu to a

number memory game.

In 2007, Ayumu became famous for his lightning speed at a game

that goes like this: A player views a computer screen where the
numbers 1 through 9 appear briefly at once and then turn to white
squares. The player then taps the squares where the numbers had
been, in order from 1 to 9. People can do it. But no human competitor
has ever completed the game faster or more accurately than Ayumu.
Now scientists think they may know the secret to the chimp's success.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: Chimp’s gift for numbers

CITATIONS & REFERENCES :

L. Sanders. Color this chimp amazing. Science News Online, June 15,
2012.

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:32
FOR KIDS: Climate Coolers - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/337901/title/FOR_KIDS_...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/337901

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Climate coolers
Reducing methane, soot in the atmosphere could curb climate
change

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

ENLARGE
Landfills release methane into the atmosphere, where the
greenhouse gas traps heat and contributes to global warming.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Most global warming stories talk about carbon dioxide, the colorless
gas that accumulates in the atmosphere and insulates the planet like
a giant, invisible blanket. But carbon dioxide isn’t the only greenhouse
gas. Another, called methane, also traps heat in Earth’s atmosphere
(one definition of the greenhouse effect) — more than 20 times as
much as the same amount of carbon dioxide. But unlike carbon
dioxide, which can hover for hundreds of years, methane stays in the
air for only about 12 years.

So reducing methane might be an easy way to start tackling a big

problem.

In a new study, scientists say that bringing down methane emissions

may be a quick, relatively simple way to slow down the temperature
increase caused by global warming.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full story:
Climate coolers

CITATIONS & REFERENCES :

D. Powell. Small efforts to reduce methane, soot could have big effect.
Science News Online, January 12, 2012.http://www.sciencenews.org
/view/generic/id/337614/title
/Small_efforts_to_reduce_methane%2C_soot_could_have_big_effect

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:38
FOR KIDS: Lip-reading Babies - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/338069/title/FOR_KIDS...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/338069

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Lip-reading babies
Before they start talking, babbling babies ‘read’ mouths

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Friday, February 3rd, 2012

Babies work hard to get ready to talk. They listen intently, and at
around 6 months of age start to babble with passion while their brains
figure out how to make sounds understood by others. A new study
suggests babies might also learn to gab by using their eyes. Months
before their babble becomes real words, babies watch people’s lips as
they talk.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: Lip-reading babies

CITATIONS & REFERENCES :

B. Bower. Babies lip-read before talking. Science News, Vol. 181,

January 17, 2012,p. 9. Available online:

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:39
FOR KIDS: Mammals Feel The Heat - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/341303/title/FOR_KID...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/341303

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Mammals feel the heat
Scientists predict some animals won’t be able to keep up with
Earth’s increasing temperatures

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Tuesday, June 5th, 2012

ENLARGE
Scientists say squirrel monkeys may not be able to move to new
habitats fast enough to keep up with climate change.
Dave Pape/Wikimedia Commons

It’s getting hotter: The average temperature on Earth has been rising
for more than 200 years, with the steepest climbs in recent times.
When our planet adjusts like this, so does everything that lives on it.
In a new study, scientists from the University of Washington in
Seattle set out to investigate how 493 different kinds of mammals
might respond to Earth’s warming climate. And their findings indicate
many may not survive.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: Mammals feel the heat

CITATIONS & REFERENCES :

J. Raloff. Climate change may leave many animals homeless. Science

News Online, May 14, 2012. __

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:34
FOR KIDS: No Frostbite For Dogs - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/338237/title/FOR_KIDS...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/338237

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: No frostbite for dogs
Blood vessels in dog paws keep their temperature just right

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Friday, February 10th, 2012

ENLARGE
Dogs can fetch and roll over in the snow without fear of frostbite,
thanks to the arrangement of blood vessels in their paws.
Dan Bennett

When playful pups skid across an icy pond or romp in a snowdrift,

their paws plunge into frosty places. If people go barehanded and
barefooted in such cold places, their skin may freeze in a painful
condition called frostbite. Dogs frolic without fear of frostbite, and
scientists from Japan say they’ve figured out why.

Dog paws don’t freeze because the arrangement of blood vessels

beneath the animals’ skin keeps the temperature just right, the
scientists report. The arrangement helps the animal hold on to body
heat, which might otherwise be easily lost through their hairless
paws.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: No frostbite for dogs

CITATIONS & REFERENCES :

H. Ninomiya et al. 2011. Functional anatomy of the footpad vasculature

of dogs: scanning electron microscopy of vascular corrosion casts.
Veterinary Dermatology, Vol. 22, p. 475.
S. Ornes. Wet-dog physics. Science News for Kids, November 8, 2010.
E. Sohn. What makes a dog? Science News for Kids, April 27, 2004.
E. Sohn. Finding out what makes dogs tick. Science News for Kids,
September 29, 2003.

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:38
FOR KIDS: Self-cleaning Clothes - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/337490/title/FOR_KIDS_...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/337490

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Self-cleaning clothes
Simply a few hours of sunshine cleans specially treated cotton
fabrics

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Thursday, January 12th, 2012

ENLARGE
Scientists in China have developed cotton fabric that uses sunlight
to rid clothes of stains and smells.

Cleaning clothes usually requires soap and water to remove stains

and smells, and a tumble in the dryer or an afternoon on the
clothesline to dry. The time and energy needed to turn a heap of dirty
laundry into a pile of clean clothes might make people wish for clothes
that just clean themselves.

That wish is a step closer to coming true. Recent experiments show

that cotton fabric coated with the right mixture of chemicals can
dissolve stains and remove odors after only a few hours in the sun.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: Self-cleaning clothes

CITATIONS & REFERENCES :

S. Ornes. A louse-y start for clothing. Science News for Kids. May 4,
2010.

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:40
FOR KIDS: Sweets On The Brain - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/342128/title/FOR_KIDS...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/342128

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Sweets on the brain
Sugar-free sweeteners fool the body’s internal computer

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Friday, July 6th, 2012

ENLARGE
Surprise: The artificial sweeteners in some soft drinks may mess
with brain's calorie counter.
ValentynVolkov/iStockphoto

In a new study, psychologists from San Diego report that the

sugar-free sweeteners confuse not only taste buds but also the brain.

Previous studies have found a surprising connection between gaining

weight and drinking diet soda, and the new study may help explain
why. The brains of people who regularly drink diet soda get mixed up
keeping track of calories, say the scientists. And that deception may
unconsciously encourage people to overeat.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: Sweets on the brain

CITATIONS & REFERENCES :

J. Raloff. “Diet sodas may confuse brain’s ‘calorie counter.’” Science

News, Vol. 182, June 13, 2012, p. 14.
J. Raloff. Diet sodas may confuse brain’s ‘calorie counter. Science
News, Vol. 182, June 13, 2012, p. 14. Available online:

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:29
FOR KIDS: The Oldest Place On Earth - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/341549/title/FOR_KIDS...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/341549

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: The oldest place on Earth
Antarctica may seem like the dead continent, but it once bustled
with life, a little of which still survives

Douglas Fox
By

Web edition : Friday, June 15th, 2012

ENLARGE
Antarctica's Friis Hills have changed very little in the past 20 million
years, which makes it a prime place for scientists to search for
fossils.

The Friis Hills in Antarctica are dead and dry, nothing but gravel and
sand and boulders. The hills sit on a flattop mountain 60 kilometers
from the coast. They are blasted by cold winds that scream off the
Antarctic Ice Sheet 30 kilometers farther inland. The temperature
here falls to -50° Celsius during winter, and rarely climbs above -5° in
summer. But an unbelievable secret hides just below.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: The oldest place on Earth

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:30
FOR KIDS: Tiny Earthworms’ Big Impact - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/335968/title/FOR_KIDS...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/335968

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Tiny earthworms’ big impact
Invasive earthworms change North American landscapes, for
better or worse

Cecile LeBlanc
By

Web edition : Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

ENLARGE
Invasive earthworms, like the ones in this bait cup sold at stores,
are spread by human activity such as fishermen dumping live bait
and gardeners using live compost worms near forests.
UMD-NRRI

Earthworms have many fans. In 1881, Charles Darwin — the father of

evolutionary theory — wrote a whole book on earthworms. In it, he
concluded that “It may be doubted whether there are many other
animals which have played so important a part in the history of the
world, as have these lowly organized creatures.”

But many American scientists are coming to view some earthworms

as enemies.

To see why, visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the
full story: Tiny earthworms’ big impact

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:42
FOR KIDS: Whale-free Perfume - Science News http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/342176/title/FOR_KID...

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/342176

Home / News / Article

FOR KIDS: Whale-free perfume
Tree gene trick is good news for people who like perfume made
without sperm whale waste

Stephen Ornes
By

Web edition : Wednesday, July 11th, 2012

ENLARGE
Ambergris: It’s waxy, flammable, comes from the belly of a whale
— and it might be in your favorite perfume.
P. Kaminski

Expensive perfumes come in tiny bottles, but many hide a

whale-sized secret.

To perfect a particular smell, perfume makers often use an ingredient

that comes from sperm whales with upset tummies. The whale waste,
called ambergris, is solid and greasy on its own. Studies on plant
chemicals, however, point to a new way to make high-end perfume
without ambergris.

Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full
story: Whale-free perfume

1 of 2 17-07-2012 18:26