How do amphibians breathe underwater? They breathe through their skin. The word “amphibian” comes from the Greek amphi, meaning both and bios, meaning life. The word was first used in the 1630s and it was used to mean animals that “have two modes of existence”. There are about 7,000 different types of amphibians in the […]
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What causes brain damage? There are several things that cause brain damage. These can be traumatic injury, poison, stroke, tumor, or lack of oxygen. The brain weighs about 1.5 kg on average and contains over 100 billion nerve cells. It uses 20% of the body’s energy, which is more than any other organ. Obviously, without
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How did the Black Death change society? It ended serfdom and slavery, improved worker conditions, brought a recession, harmed religion, increased antisemitism, improved medical practice, improved women’s rights, and changed the world of art and fashion. There were three major plagues, but let’s look at the middle one, the one that is most famous. It
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How did the Black Death spread? It was spread by people along trade routes. The Black Death is another name for bubonic plague, which is caused by a bacteria called Yersinia pestis. Y. pestis generally lives in fleas that feed on rats. When the flea bites the rat, the bacteria passes into the rat’s blood.
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How much blood can you lose? Well, obviously all of it. How much blood can you lose and still function? Depending on your body size, from between 15 to 30%. We have approximately 5 liters of blood in our bodies, but that varies by size. An average-sized female of 165 cm will have about 4.3
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Why is PM 2.5 dangerous? They are particles that are too small for our nose to catch. PM stands for Particle Matter and they are microscopic solid or liquid particles that are small enough and light enough to be suspended in the air. There are many sources of these particles. In some countries, one of
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How do fossils form? They form when the bones of an animal are turned to mineral. A fossil forms when an animal dies in water or falls into water. This water is more commonly an ocean or a lake because for a fossil to form, the sediment at the bottom of the water has to
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Why do we get hot when we exercise? Because heat is a byproduct of the process muscles use to make energy. Let’s look at how we get energy to our muscles. We are unable to make our own energy, we can only convert one energy source into another. We have to eat plants or animals
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Could penguins fly in the past? Yes, they could, but millions of years ago. There are many birds that could fly at some point but that have lost the ability. The Galapagos Cormorant is a good example. They are only found on two of the Galapagos islands. They are not originally from the island, so
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How do chemotherapy and radiotherapy work? Chemotherapy works by damaging the DNA inside the nucleus of the cancer cells and stopping them dividing. Radiotherapy works by targeting the cancer directly and damaging its DNA. How does cancer form? As our cells age, they die and new cells replace them. Some cells are replaced more quickly
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