Indholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2022 i Ask Science and Arts Magazine for Kids and Children

World’s Biggest Weed This looks like grass, but it’s really a plant called Poseidon’s ribbon weed. Off the coast of Australia, it makes huge lawns on the ocean floor. When scientists studied one area of this underwater lawn, they realized all that grass was actually one enormous plant. The sea grass can grow by making clones of itself. These clones sprout off of the original plant. All the sea grass leaves in this area seem to be clones, because they share the same genes. The scientists think this single plant has been growing here for as long as 4,500 years. It now covers about 180 square kilometers. That may make this city-sized lawn the largest plant on Earth. (Good thing no one has to mow it.) Super Space Snaps The…

What is hair, and how does it grow? Look around, and you’ll see all kinds of hair. Some people’s hair is curly. Other hair grows straight. Some is blonde. Some is brown. Some is blue. What makes hair grow the way it does? How does hair grow? Hair and animal fur grow from special hair cells in the skin. These cells sit in little pits called follicles. Mammals have hair follicles scattered all over their bodies. That’s something all mammals share: we’re animals with hair. Hair starts out as a column of skin cells packed with a protein called keratin. Keratin is the same stuff that makes fingernails, claws, and horns. As new cells grow at the base of the hair follicle, they push the old cells up. These cells…

Despite their name, naked mole rats are neither moles nor rats—they’re more closely related to porcupines and guinea pigs. But they are naked! Or perhaps more accurately, hairless, except for a few bristly whiskers. These little animals spend their lives entirely underground. Naked mole rats can’t regulate their body temperature, meaning they are cold-blooded, like reptiles. They use very little oxygen, so they can survive in stuffy tunnels. They have no pain sensors in their skin. And like many desert animals, they never drink water, getting all the moisture they need from the roots they eat. And their oddness doesn’t stop there. Naked mole rats live in large colonies with a single queen who has all the babies, surrounded by an army of workers and soldiers. Every naked mole rat…

In the middle of Serengeti National Park in Tanzania, Africa, a lioness approaches two unknown males. One has a mane that is light in color—nearly the same color as the rest of his body. The other lion’s dark mane stands out against his lighter fur. The lioness pads past the light-maned male. It’s the one with the dark mane who’s caught her interest. She pauses, watching him, then she slinks up to tickle his nose with the tip of her tail. She’s chosen him as a mate. Too bad he’s just a big stuffed toy. From the safety of her truck, Peyton West watches the lion through the view-finder of her video camera. She is thrilled with the lion’s behavior. She’d suspected that female lions prefer males with dark manes—and…

If your hair is like mine, it doesn’t do very much. Most of the time it just hangs there. Manatee hair is another story. Manatees are large, gentle, slow-moving marine mammals, and their hair can do things yours can’t. They use their hair to identify and grasp underwater plants, and as antennae to “see” the world around them! That Hairy Feeling Many animals use whiskers to help them feel. The scientific name for whiskers is vibrissae, or tactile hairs—hairs that are used for touching. Of course, the hairs themselves can’t feel (since hair is not alive). Whiskers are sensitive because they are connected to many nerves in the skin at the hairs’ roots. The more nerves each hair is connected to, the more sensitive it is. So, how sensitive are…

Send your letters to Ask, 1 East Erie Street, Suite 525, PMB4136, Chicago, IL 60611, or have your parent/guardian email us at ask@cricketmedia.com. Dear Marvin, Do you like whittling? I do. If you do, then I have a prank. Whittle a fish and then dunk the fish in sunscreen. When Plush takes a bite she will taste sunscreen! Ben Z., age 9, California Dear Ben, We should write a cook book—so few humans appreciate the deliciousness of a really good piece of sunscreen-dressed wood for gnawing. So crunchy! Though Plush may not appreciate the finer points of wood cuisine. More for us. Crunchily Rats and Marvin Dear Ask, Have scientists ever found a planet that could have aliens? Abby N., age 7, Washington Dear Abby, Astronomers have detected a few…

Hair Raising Have you ever thought of planting your old hair? Some farmers do! What comes up? Not wigs, but bigger and tastier crops. Hair is full of nitrogen, a nutrient that helps plants to grow. When cut hair is mixed into soil or compost, the hair breaks down, slowly releasing nitrogen so it can help flowers and vegetables get big a little faster. Of course, that hair won’t help your plants if a deer comes along looking for lunch…or will it? If deer are chewing up your garden, try filling a mesh bag with a couple of handfuls of hair. Deer try to avoid humans, and if they smell human hair, they might decide to stay out of your yard and leave those plants to grow in peace. Did…