May 5, 2011
What do you find every Thursday on the Seymour Science blog? Our favorite video of the week, of course!
Did you ever get to the middle of the afternoon and feel very, very sleepy? Like you might just want to roll over and take a quick nap?
We think that this panda might have been feeling exactly this way!
Posted by: Liz Nealon
May 4, 2011
Did you know that Seymour Simon’s new eBook, SILLY DINOSAUR RIDDLES, is now available as a single app that you can buy for your iPhone, iPad, iTouch, or Android phone? And it has "Read to Me," too! Click here to see and hear a video preview of the eBook.
Better yet, it is on sale, this week only, for just $1.99.
Can you guess the answer to this riddle?
Click on the "Comments" link at the bottom of this story to tell us what you would call a scared Tyrannosaurus!
Posted by: Liz Nealon
May 4, 2011
I received a photograph this morning from a student name Ryan S. He wrote:
"This is not very science related, I just knew Seymour does photography and decided to upload something. I took this one while on vacation in Florida."
Ryan, thanks for writing and for sharing your excellent photograph. What a magnificent sky! There are three different types of clouds in your photograph. The long, straight thin ones that are closest to the horizon are called stratus clouds. The ones just above them, still long, thin and low in the sky, but a little bit puffy, are strato-cumulous clouds. And the big ones that look like cotton balls high in the sky are cumulus clouds.
I found a good chart, from Web Weather for Kids, that you can use to identify all the different clouds you see. 
Or you could always read my book WEATHER, which includes many of my own photos of clouds.
Thanks for uploading your photo. And you thought it didn’t have anything to do with science!
I love it when students upload photos and videos that we can use on the blog. Do you know how to send me a photograph or a video? It’s easy. When you are on the homepage of the website, look at yellow bar at the very top of the page. Click on the little picture of a TV screen, to the right of where it says "Send us Photos/Video". That will take you to a page that reminds you how to stay safe when you upload photos or videos to the Internet, and then a very simple page that will help you upload your photo, or even record a video on your webcam!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
May 3, 2011
Seymour Simon is in Howard County, Maryland schools all this week. And, whenever Seymour is out in schools, we know that everybody starts using the website like crazy! So, we’ve decided to run a one-week contest.
We’ve changed the rules of our contest a bit, but the basic idea remains the same. One lucky winner (chosen randomly from everyone who writes) will win a personally autographed copy of Seymour Simon’s book, BABY ANIMALS.
Here is what you need to do to enter:
Look at this picture, of a mother and baby hippopatomus. Tell us what a baby hippo is called, and if you give us the right answer, you could be the winner!
Click on comments at the bottom of this article to give us your answer. The contest ends at midnight, Sunday, May 8th, so write to us soon. Tell us what school you go to, and don’t forget to include an email address (it is ok to use your parent’s or teacher’s email), so that we can get in touch with you if you are our winner.
This contest is open to Seymour Science readers all over the world, but it’s a special treat for Columbia, Maryland students, so get writing!!
Good luck!
Posted by: Liz Nealon
May 3, 2011
Do you know the expression: a watched pot doesn’t boil? It means that when you are impatiently waiting for something natural to happen, you should chill out, relax and let nature take its course.
Have you been watching the Hawk Cam that we blogged about last week? We have, and it has been feeling kind of like waiting for that pot to boil. It is hard to be patient, because we are so eager to see these babies!
I checked in today just as Violet rose to take a break, and was able to snap this very cool photo of the hawk eggs. I guess that confirms that they still have not hatched.
The babies are expected to be born in the next few days. If you want to watch and wait along with us, click on this video any time. It is not every day that you can observe something like this up close.
Posted by: Liz Nealon
May 3, 2011
I’ve been both a teacher and a student (both in New York City public schools) so Teacher Appreciation Day is also Student Appreciation Day for me. As a student, I remember best my 7th grade science teacher, Mr. D., exhausting the air in a tin can and my gasping as I watched the tin can crumple inward under the pressure of the atmosphere. I also vividly remember hearing my 7th grade English teacher, Ms. K., reading aloud a sonnet by Edna St. Vincent Millay. I fell in love with poetry that day, an affair that still lasts.
As a teacher, my favorite memory is of once teaching a science lesson and the bell ringing to signal the end of the period in the middle of the lesson. The students spontaneously groaned at the interruption, then burst out laughing at themselves, grabbed their books and raced out of the room. But for that brief moment, they paid me the highest compliment one can ever give to a teacher: their complete interest in my lesson.
Posted by: Seymour Simon
May 3, 2011
Today’s Cool Photo of the Week, taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, is of two spiral galaxies bumping up against each other. The bigger galaxy (NGC 2207, on the left) has such a strong gravitational pull that it is pulling the smaller galaxy (IC 2163, on the right) in toward it. Look at the long, white streak that looks like streamers, or a tail, on the right-hand side of the photograph. These are stars and gases, being pulled so strongly that they seem to stretch out across the light years.
NASA astronomers have calculated that the last time the two galaxies came this close was about 40 million years ago. However, IC 2163 does not have enough energy to escape the bigger galaxy’s gravitational pull, so they will continue to elbow each other as they travel through space, and billions of years from now they will probably merge into one big galaxy. It is believed that our own Milky Way galaxy was formed in just this way.
Don’t you love these Hubble photographs? The opportunity to see not only out into the universe but also back in time is still amazing to me. I never tire of looking at these magnificent images.
Photo: NASA/ESA and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI)
Posted by: Seymour Simon
May 2, 2011
Are you a fan of Seymour Simon’s 3D books? If so, you’ll want to know that CREATURES OF THE DARK :: 3D is in Scholastic’s Lucky Book Club starting today. The book comes with 3D glasses, and it is 24 pages chock full of right-in-your-face views of fascinating animals that live their lives in the dark.
This book is only available to order for the month of May, so ask your teacher for a flyer and get it while you can!
Posted by: Liz Nealon
April 30, 2011
I am so proud of all of you who wrote to me in response to Earth Day! Today, the last day of April, we posted almost 300 promises that you have made to Earth Day’s BILLION ACTS OF GREEN website. Seymour Science readers have really stepped up to make a difference! I feel sure that you will all work hard to continue caring for our planet Earth every day.
As promised, we are publishing everyone’s writing about why they care about Earth Day. This list is alphabetical, so find your name and show your writing to your families, your teachers, your librarians and your friends. You are part of an important cause, and each of you deserves to be very proud of what you’ve done.
Alana:
Dear Mr. Simon, My carbon footprint was very surprising to me. To know how large of a footprint I am leaving is mind blowing. My carbon foot is 19.9. I have a fairly large family. I have 5 people in my family. To reduce my carbon footprint I could turn off the T.V. when I am not watching it. Also, I could reduce the amount of time I use the T.V. Another thing I could do is buy a reusable water bottle. I could also eat less fast food. Sincerely, Alana
Alana B.:
I am going to celebrate Earth month 2011 by doing many good things for the Earth. A few things that I will do is cleaning up the nearby creeks and roads. Also, I will make the people that surround me aware of the Earth and how much we need to help it.
Alex:
I love trees and that’s why I don’t waste paper so I recycle and encourage others to care about are world like a mother would care for her newborn. We can all do this together so join me!
Alyssa:
Hey Seymour Simon! Our class is recycling all of our paper to help the environment!!!!!!!! Our class is going green!!!!!
Amanda:
I am going to help my neighbors recycle (pick up) stray trash on the streets and our community! Earth Day is everyday! ALWAYS RECYCLE!
Amber:
Me and my mom grow our own food like fruits and vegetables. Maybe I could start a garden at my dad’s too and that is how I will help the earth.
Amelia P.:
Hey Seymour Simon! Our class (Ms.Wolf’s class.) is going green! We are recycling all of our old papers! Your butterfly garden is really cool!
Andrew H.:
Dear Seymour Simon, My name is Andrew and I am a student at Churchville Elementary. My carbon footprint was 16.25. I am not too proud about that so I’ve been trying to lessen that score by walking more to "baseball practice" or my friend’s house. I also am only washing my clothes when I need to. My new wash day is Friday instead of ever other day. I also bought an aluminum bottle for water. I thank you for this opportunity to write back to you. Sincerely, Andrew
Andy:
My Earth Day Pledge is that I will never ever litter,and not use too much electricity.
Andy:
Here’s my idea to save the earth: when you’re done with electric appliances, turn them off. Never use too much electricity. How do you save the earth?...read more
Posted by: Seymour Simon
April 28, 2011
As part of our month-long Earth Day celebration, we are introducing a new weekly treat on SeymourSimon.com. Regular users know that every Tuesday brings a new "Cool Photo of the Week." And, every Friday the website is updated with a new Silly Animal Joke or Riddle.
And now we have a new special feature. Welcome to Stupendous Video Thursday! We start with this clip of two young polar bears play-fighting. I think you will agree that this is an absolutely stupendous piece of video.
Female polar bears give birth to two cubs, who stay with their mother for about a year-and-a-half, learning to hunt and live on their own. These young animals like to play-fight, baring their teeth and biting their brothers and sisters. That’s how the cub develops the physical skills it needs for moving, jumping and hunting. Even if this fight looks fierce, it’s just a game for them.
Speaking of Silly Animal Jokes and Riddles, I have a polar bear joke.
Question: What do you call an angry Polar Bear ?
Answer: You don’t call him anything, you just run.
What are you doing this Earth Month to contribute to the global effort to pledge a Billion Acts of Green? Click on "Comments," at the bottom of any Earth Day story, and tell me how you are making a difference. We will continue to accept your ideas through Thursday, April 28. Then, on Friday 4/29, we will publish all your comments in one big article, to honor each writer’s promise to protect our planet, and inspire other readers to do the same.
Posted by: Liz Nealon
