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Ambulance

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Ambulance

Sirens sound, the ambulance is on the way!

  • Ambulances are transportation for sick or hurt people, and are often used as an emergency vehicle.
  • Most ambulances are specially modified and fitted out vans packed with medical equipment, and have prominent colours and designs on the exterior to gain maximum attention.
  • In an emergency, ambulances use loud sirens and coloured, flashing lights to warn people to get out of the way.
  • Ambulances can be in the form of a car, train, truck, van, bicycle, trailer, motorbike, cart, bus, helicopter, wing aircraft, boat, and hospital ships.
  • The word ‘ambulance’ comes from the Latin word ‘ambulare’, which means walk or move about.

Emergency Ambulance truck, Ten Random Facts, Free Stock Photos

Ambulance
Image courtesy of Free Stock Photos
  • The first ambulances were carts and used in 1487, by the Spanish.
  • There are normally two ambulance officers, paramedics, that travel in an ambulance.  One drives the vehicle and the other attends to the sick person whilst in transit.
  • Ambulances are more likely to be involved in a car crash than fire trucks and police cars.
  • As well as containing equipment to treat patients, ambulances are also normally equipped with two-way radios, mobile data terminals, video cameras, tail lifts or ramps, trauma lighting, air conditioning and data recorders.
  • In an emergency, ambulances may be allowed to use a red traffic light or stop sign as a ‘give way’ sign and/or be allowed to break the speed limit.
Bibliography:
Ambulance 26 October 2012, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambulance>
Graham, I 2006, Emergency!, QED Publishing, United Kingdom

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Dragonfly

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Dragonfly

Zoom, zoom ancient, little dragons.

  • Dragonflies belong to the insect group called Odonata species, and are close relatives to damselflies which also belong to this group. They are found worldwide, except in Antarctica.
  • Adult dragonflies have large eyes, a long abdomen body and two pairs of large, transparent wings.  They usually rest with their wings spread out.
  • Dragonfly wings can beat in opposite directions, allowing the dragonfly to hover and fly backwards as well as fly forwards.  They zoom through the air and can fly at speeds of 58 km/h (36 mph).
  • Dragonfly adults lay their eggs by dropping them on water.  The eggs hatch into dragonfly nymphs which have good legs, eyes and jaws and live underwater.

Dragonfly resting, Wings spread, Ten Random Facts

  • In Spring or Summer, a mature nymph climbs out of the water and moults wings and becomes an adult dragonfly.
  • The markings of a female are normally different to a male’s markings.
  • Adult dragonflies have larger eyes and are more colourful than dragonfly nymphs.
  • Adult dragonflies eat insects and small water creatures and us their feet to capture prey.
  • Dragonfly nymphs hunt small water creatures and fish using stealth, ambushing and stalking techniques.  When its prey is close enough, the nymph shoots out a harpoon like mask that stabs and reels in the prey.
  • Dragonflies are threatened due to the drainage of wetlands were they lay eggs and nymphs survive.
Bibliography:
Burnie, D 2005, E.Explore Insect, Dorling Kindersley, Great Britian

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Planet Jupiter

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Planet Jupiter

Jupiter, the king of the planets, can be seen by the naked eye.

  • Jupiter is the fourth brightest ‘star/light’ in the sky and is made from gases and liquids.
  • Jupiter is named after the king of the Roman gods (Jupiter), due to the way it shines brightly and the way it moves among the stars.
  • Jupiter has more than 67 moons and counting.  The first four moons of Jupiter were discovered in 1610 by Italian astronomer, Galileo.
  • The first close-up photo of Jupiter was taken in 1973 by the space probe Pioneer 10.  The first rings were discovered by the space probe Voyager 1 in 1979 and are made from the dust of Jupiter’s inner moons.
  • Jupiter is averagely 778 330 000 km (483 340 000 miles) away from the sun.
Planet Jupiter, Great Red Spot, Ganymede Moon, Three Colour, NASA NSSDC Gallery, Ten Random Facts
Mars
Photo courtesy of NASA – NSSDC (Broken Link)
  • On Jupiter, 1 day (rotation) takes 9.83 earth hours and 1 year (Jupiter’s orbit of the sun) takes 11.86 earth years, the orbit being an almost perfect circle.
  • Jupiter is the heaviest planet and weighs approximately 317.89 times of Earth’s mass and its diameter is 142 984 km (88 793 miles).
  • The colour of the clouds of Jupiter are orange, brown, red, cream and white.  The winds on Jupiter are caused from the heat of the sun and there is a storm raging on the planet called the Great Red Spot.
  • The magnetic field of Jupiter is ten times stronger than Earth’s field.
  • Jupiter gives off strange radio signals and produces lots of heat.
Bibliography:
Birch, R 2004, Jupiter, Macmillian Education, South Yarra

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Magnet

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Magnet

Attracting and repulsing – that is a magnet’s main properties.

  • Magnets attract certain materials which are iron, nickel and cobalt (all of these make steel, therefore making steel magnetic).
  • There are 3 types of magnets – permanent, which won’t lose it’s magnetic force; temporary, which can lose it’s magnetic force when jolted; and natural magnets, which is a naturally made magnet.  Some magnets are stronger than others.
  • The magnetic domains inside a steel object must be lined up to make the object magnetic. If the domains aren’t lined up, the domains will point in different directions, and won’t be magnetic.
  • The Chinese discovered a natural magnet, called magnetite/lodestone.
  • Putting a strong magnet near a device with a magnet in it (like a TV or PC) could destroy the device.

Horse shoe magnet, Metalic, Steel, Ten Random Facts, Free Digital Photos

Magnet
Image courtesy of Danilo Rizzuti/ Free Digital Photos
  • If you spread iron filings over a piece of paper which is over a magnet the filings move into the shape of the magnet’s magnetic field.
  • Magnets have north and south poles.  If a north pole meets a north pole, or vise versa, one magnet will be pushed away and this is called repulsion, and if a north and south pole meet, they attract.
  • Maglev is short for the magnetic levatation which can suspend things in the air.
  • Earth is a one gigantic magnet which traps solar flares from the sun in it’s magnetic field.
  • Loggerhead turtles have magnetite/lodestone in their brains, and use these magnets to navigate back to their birthplace to lay eggs.
Bibliography:
Carmi, R 2001, Amazing Magnetism, Scholastic, New York

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Earplugs

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Earplugs

Earplugs are used for many things but don’t block those facts!

  • Earplugs help protect from loud noises, hearing loss, tinnitus, water coming into the ears, dust or wind.
  • Wearing earplugs while diving is bad since the water and air will pressure your ears.
  • Earplugs can be made out of wax, silicone and memory foam.
  •  To insert foam earplugs into your ears you have to roll the earplug into a thin rod and pull back on your ear. Then gently push the plug deep into the ear canal and wait 20 seconds.
  • The first recorded use of earplugs was in Ancient Greece when Odysseus’ crew, used the plugs to block out the sound of the Siren’s songs.

Green Earplugs, Shape, Shaped, Foam, Point, Safe, Max Lite, Howard Leight Hearing Protection Earplugs, Ten Random Facts, short, Australia, block, sound, fit, bench, background, rounded, two, double, pair, TRF, Photo, Image. Craft Retreat, Print

  • Ross Gardner discovered modern earplug material, a type of foam, in 1967.
  • Musicians wear flanged earplugs in their ears during their loud performances.
  • Earplugs that are designed to prevent snoring may have parts of the plug that reduces the volume of the snoring so you cans still hear louder sounds.
  • Earplugs must be used carefully otherwise they could do serious damage. This damage can be the result of pressure of the air or water pushing on your ear or earwax and other grit in your ear that is pushing on your eardrum.
  • Special earplugs for flying are available.  They help to reduce pain associated with flying by equalising air pressure in the ear.
Bibliography:
Earplug 17 October 2012, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earplug>

Uluru

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Uluru

One hot rock formation, more fascinating than these facts!

  • Uluru is a famous, mostly sandstone rock in Northern Territory, Central Australia.
  • The traditional owners of Uluru are the Pitjantjatjara and the Anangu Anangu.
  • Uluru is also known as Ayers Rock, named after Sir Henry Ayers.
  • There has been approximately 150 bird, 46 mammal, 73 reptile and 400 plant and flora species sited at or near Uluru.
  • It is possible to climb Uluru but it is requested that you refrain from doing so by the indigenous Australians due to spiritual and safety reasons.

Uluru Sunset, Sedimentry Rock, World Heritage, Orange, Igneous Australians, Ayers Rock, Aboriginals, Northern Territory Australia, Ten Random Facts

  • Uluru is a world heritage site and as a result, attracts more than 400,000 visitors a year.
  • Uluru is 348 meters high (1142 feet) and is 863 meters (2831 feet) above sea level.
  • The average rainfall at Uluru is 284.6 ml (11.2 inches) yearly.
  • The average temperature at Uluru is 37.8°C (100°F).
  •  35 deaths have occurred from climbing Uluru, and many injuries sustained due to harsh landscape and climates.
Bibliography:
Uluru 31 October 2012, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uluru>

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