What Is Carbon

Carbon

carbon is important to all forms of life. It makes up less than 1 percent of all matter, but everything that lives or has lived contains this element. The bodies of all living things are made up of compounds containing carbon,  and where it is found in any quantity in the earth, life has probably … Read more

What Is Athlete’s Foot

Foot

You do not have to be an athlete to have an athlete’s foot. This is basically a fungus infection of the foot, and most persons are liable to catch it to some degree,  though some people are especially sensitive to the fungus. The name of this disease comes from the fact that it is often … Read more

What Is Archaeology

Archaeology

Archaeology gives us the story of the people who lived in the past. Archaeologists study the objects these early people left behind. There are two parts to archaeological work. Each part requires special training. The first part is “excavating”, or digging up the places where early people lived or worked. This is a job that … Read more

What Is An Appendix

Appendix

The appendix seems to be a part of the body that we can manage without, and even if it is healthy it does not so important for us. The appendix is a hollow tube, about 8 to 15 centimeters long, closed at the end.  In other words,  it is a  “blind” tube that does not … Read more

What Is Anaemia

Anaemia

Anemia is a word used to describe many different conditions having to do with disorders of the blood. These conditions exist when the blood does not contain the normal number of red cells, or when the cells do not have the normal amount of hemoglobin. Anemia can be caused by poor blood formation, the destruction … Read more

What Is An Optical Illusion

Optical Illusion

The simplest way to describe an optical illusion is that it is a “trick” that our eyes play on us. We seem to see that isn’t really so. Or we may be able to see the same object in two completely different ways. If our eyes are functioning properly, and they as instruments for seeing exactly … Read more

What Is An Electric EEL

EEL

The electric eel is one of a group of electric fish. These fish capture their prey and defend themselves from enemies by discharging electric shocks. They closely resemble and are related to other fish, but they just happen to have this electric power. Scientists still cannot explain the origin and development of the electric power … Read more

What Is An Echidna

Echidna

One of the strangest animals you could see is an echidna or spiny ant-eater. The echidna has long claws, a tubelike snout, and a covering of short, stiff spines like that of a hedgehog or porcupine. But what makes it strange is that although it is a mammal, it lays eggs! This animal and the … Read more

What Is An Asp

Asp

An asp is simply a kind of snake. It belongs to a family of snakes called “vipers”, which includes some of the deadliest poisonous snakes in the world. Some other snakes in this unpleasant group are the rattlesnake, the water moccasin, the copperhead, the South American bushmaster, the poisonous adder of Europe, the chain viper … Read more

What Is An Aphid

Aphid

Another name for the insects known as “aphids” is “plant lice”. They are green or brownish in color,  and the largest ones are not more than six millimeters long. Aphids reproduce so rapidly that if they were not destroyed by their natural enemies, they would eat up nearly all the vegetation in the world! Aphids … Read more