Author Archives: Cris

Pear

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Pear

Pears in a pear tree. Sweet n juicy.

  • There are approximately 3000 varieties of pears grown around the world, and they are from the species of Pyrus and the family of roses, Rosaceae.
  • In Ancient Greece, pears were used in medicine as a treatment for nausea.
  • Pears are native to the coastal and mild temperature areas in Europe, Africa and Asia.
  • Pears grow on pear trees that reach 10-17 metres (31.8 – 55.8 feet) tall and are normally harvested when they are green, before they ripen.
  • China is by far the greatest producer of pears in the world, producing nearly 16 million tonnes in 2011, followed by Italy and the United States of America with less than 1 million tonnes each.

Pear, yellow fleshed, orange, five, yummy, sweet, Ten Random Facts

  • Pears are eaten fresh, canned or dried and the pear juice can be made into jelly, jam and cider.
  • Pears ripen faster when placed in a bowl with bananas.
  • Before the introduction of tobacco in Europe, pear leaves were originally smoked.
  • Pears are good sources of vitamin C and dietary fibre, most of which can be found in the skin.
  • Pear tree wood is a valued timber for carving and the construction of instruments, as it is very stable and does not warp.
Bibliography:
Pear 10 February 2013, Wikipedia,  <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pear>

Coyote

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Coyote

Stealthy wolves…

  • Coyote are also known as American jackals, brush wolves and prairie wolves.
  • Coyote are found in the north and central areas of America.
  • There are 19 subspecies of coyote and they range from to 76–86 cm(30–34) in length.
  • Coyote have grey brown to yellow grey bodies, with white belly and throats, and red brown paws.
  • Coyote can jump lengths of over 4 m (13ft) and they can reach high speeds of 69 km per hour (43 mph).
Coyote, Wolf, Snow, Background, Yellowstone National Park wildlife, USA, National Geographic, Ten Random Facts
Coyote
Image courtesy of National Geographic
  • It is usual for coyote to travel and live in groups and hunt in pairs.
  • Coyote generally have litters of one to nineteen pups, although six pups is the average.
  • Coyote make high pitched howls, yips, yelps and bark sounding calls.
  • Coyote eat small mammals, birds, livestock and large insects, as well as vegetation including fruit and vegetables.
  • Coyote do not normally attack humans and do not generally cause serious harm, although more attacks have been occuring recently in California, United States of America.
Bibliography:
Coyote 12 February 2013 , Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coyote>

Pictionary

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Pictionary

Now draw… Pictionary!!

  • Pictionary is a drawing game that involves guessing a word or phrase while a representation of the word is quickly drawn.
  • Pictionary was invented by Robert Angel, a waiter at the time, and designed by Gary Everson.
  • Prior to Pictionary being published, Robert Angel would randomly choose a word from the dictionary and draw the word for party goers to guess.
  • A dice is used in Pictionary to determine what square your team lands on, and the word your team has to draw and guess.  Generally the game is played with two people in each team.
  • Robert Angel originally self published Pictionary under the banner of Angel Games Inc., in 1985.

Pictionary, Game, Drawing, Art, Board, Pencil, Cards, Drawings, Play, Ten Random Facts

  • Pictionary words are typically sorted into five different categories, with five words, one in each category, on each card.  The categories are person, place, animal; object; action, difficult, and all play.
  • In Pictionary, a one minute timer of sand is generally used during the drawing and guessing process.
  • Pictionary drawings can not include letters, numbers or symbols.
  • In Pictionary, some of the hardest words to draw are verbs.
  • A video game based on Pictionary was released in 1990.
Bibliography:
Pictionary 22 January 2013 , Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pictionary>
Pictionary Word Generator n.d., Word Generator,  <http://www.wordgenerator.net/pictionary-word-generator.php>

Amazon River

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Amazon River

One of the longest rivers…

  • The Amazon River is in South America and crosses most of the continent, and runs all the way across the top of Brazil.
  • The Amazon River is generally named the second largest river in the world.
  • There is a debate about the Amazon River being the second longest river in the world. More accurate measuring systems in recent years suggests that the Amazon River is longer than the Nile (supposedly the longest river), which reaches 5,499 to 6,690 km (3,417 – 4,160 miles) in length, whereas the Amazon River is said to be 6,259 to 6,800 km (3,889 – 4,200 miles) in length.
  • The Amazon River discharges more water than the other top seven largest rivers combined, with an average discharge of approximately 209,000 m3/s (7,381,000 cu ft/s).
  • The Amazon River has the largest river basin in the world being 7, 050, 000 square km (2, 720, 000 square miles) and contains many river systems.

Amazon River, Aerial View, Green, Blue, Landscape, Ten Random Facts, Flickr, CIFOR

Amazon River
Image courtesy of CIFOR/Flickr
  • The Amazon River ranges in width, depending on the season, being 1.6 – 10 km (1 – 6.2 miles) wide in the dry season, and in the wet season the river can reach up to 48 km (3o miles) wide.
  • The Amazon River starts its flooding season in November and continues to around June.
  • The Amazon River is the home to many animals, most notably the Amazon River dolphin (boto) and the anaconda snake.
  • The Amazon River is the home of over 5,600 known fish species.
  • The Amazon River has an underground river, called Hamza, flowing underneath it, which is about 6,000 km (3, 730 miles) in length, and generally follows a similar path to the Amazon.
Bibliography:
Amazon River 10 February 2013 , Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_River>

Helicopter

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Helicopter

It’s a bird!  It’s a plane!  No… It’s a helicopter!

  • Helicopters are aircraft that can fly horizontally, vertically and can hover.
  • Helicopters are a type of rotorcraft, which enables them to land almost anywhere, because the rotor blades allows the copter to fly vertically.
  • Helicopters are also known as choppers, whirlybirds and helos.
  • Helicopters have their origins in children’s flying toys, made from bamboo as early as 400 BC.
  • Many vertical flying ideas have been experimented with over the centuries and the term ‘helicopter’ was coined for a machine, that did not lift off the ground, in 1861.

Helicopters, Two, Above, Bottom View, Army coloured, Military, Australia, Ten Random Facts

  • The first ‘flight’ of a helicopter occurred in 1907, and the first full scale production helicopter was designed by Igo Sikorsky in 1942.
  • Helicopters are used for, but not limited to, transportation, military, health and safety, construction and tourism.
  • Helicopters move slower than most aircraft since the rotor blades’ speed depends on the speed of the copter.
  • If helicopters are unsafely operated, helicopters could go out of control or crash and end in serious consequences.
  • Up until 2012, the deadliest helicopter crash was a shoot down of a Mil Mi 26 over Chechnya, which killed 127 people.
Bibliography:
Helicopter 5 February 2013 , Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helicopter>

Mondo Grass

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Mondo Grass

Swishy sway.

  • Mondo grass is an evergreen, small grassy plant.
  • Mondo grass is also known as fountain plant, monkey grass, dragon’s beard and snake’s beard and its official name is Ophiopogon japonicus.
  • Mondo grass is native to Japan.
  • Mondo grass plants range from 10 – 30 cm (4 – 12 inches) in height, depending on the variety.
  • Mondo grass produce small white or pale lilac coloured flowers.

Mondo Grass, Lily, Japanese, Dragons beard, Fountain, Row, Australia, Ten Random Facts

  • Mondo grass produces a blue berry which is about 5 mm (0.2 inches) in diameter.
  • Mondo grass is used in traditional Chinese medicine.
  • Some people use Mondo grass as an aquatic plant, which normally dies if not kept in the right underwater temperature.
  • Mondo grass blooms in late Spring and early Summer.
  • Although some people think Mondo grass is a type of grass, it is actually a type of lily.
Bibliography:
Ophiopogon Japonicus 16 July 2012 , Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophiopogon_japonicus>
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