In the Know

Are you wondering what happened to these trees? No—they haven’t been painted. This is the rainbow eucalyptus tree (Eucalyptus deglupta). The colorful stripes are natural. The rainbow eucalyptus is naturally found in New Guinea, Indonesia, … Read more

Do your eyes hurt after looking at screens for a long time?  Some eyeglasses claim to protect our eyes from light coming from screens. Are these glasses necessary? Blue light is one of the colors … Read more

Water bears are tiny animals with a hidden superpower. These cute creatures are nearly indestructible. Though they are sometimes called “bears,” the tiny animals are actually more similar to insects and spiders. Water bears have … Read more

Gophers might be destructive in your yard, but scientists found that they have the opposite effect in recovering ecosystems.   Mount St. Helens is a volcano in Washington state. It erupted in 1980 and destroyed miles … Read more

This month we explore some fun facts about snow. Snow is NOT frozen rain. Sleet is frozen rain. Snow is frozen water vapor [the gas form of water]. Snow forms when water vapor changes into … Read more

Think about your traits (characteristics of living things). What color are your eyes? What color is your hair? How tall are you? You might share some traits with family members. There might be other traits … Read more

You might have recently heard about “corn sweat” on the news. Does corn really sweat? And how can it affect our weather? Corn releases moisture. And like sweat, it evaporates,or changes from a liquid to … Read more

Have you ever looked for shapes in the clouds? You might have seen different animals, hearts, or racecars. But have you ever seen one that looks like a flying saucer? Clouds form when water vapor … Read more

Have you ever been playing outside on a hot day when you notice your face and hair are all wet? What happened? Don’t sweat it—it’s just sweat! While you are at play your body is … Read more

Did you know that ice pops were invented by an 11-year-old boy? And it was an accident! He left a soda mixture out in the cold all night. It froze. In the morning, he licked … Read more