DiscoveryBox #155

ÂŁ 4.15 (UK only) Issue 155 July/August 2011 -

World

ISSN 1366-9028

How is milk made?

History Science Nature

Jellyfish attack!

Pollen allergies

Yuri Gagarin First man in space

+

Dogs poster

What are you doing?

STAMP STAMP

Can’t you see?

I’m flattening this flower!

Uh?

That’s funny!

It looked like you were smelling it!

No way!

Do you think I’m a sissy?

Tony and Alberto, n°2 by Dab’s © Glénat Editions.

Hey, Tony!

2

Chamo

You probably drink milk every day.

Have you ever wondered:

A child who weighs 33kg has 21 litres of water in their body. A jellyfish that weighs 33kg contains more than 32 litres of water!

That’s amazing isn’t it?

How is milk made?

To find go to

page

12

To find out more go to

Jellyfish attack! page 4 Yuri Gagarin was the first man:

Our best friend!

in space on the Moon

To show obedience, a dog puts: its tail between its legs its ears back

To find out go to

page

To find out go to

20

25

page

Look out!

It’s allergy time!

How many people suffer from pollen allergies?

1 in 2 1 in 5 To find out go to

Super fire engine

page

The latest truck has a long arm that can rise 32m up into the air.

Have a giggle with the comic strips (pages 2, 10, 18, 36 and 37) and discover lots of amazing funfacts (pages 10, 18, 28 and 36).

38

Look out for these symbols: M o re in

DIY

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This panel sends you to M o re in at the back of M o re in the DIY section DIY DIY DiscoveryBox where there will be an activity for you to do. r

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Readers’ survey page 41.

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DiscoveryBox is a 2010 and 2011 winner of a Parents’ Choice Recommended Award.

DiscoveryBox is printed on chlorinefree paper from managed forests.

3

Photo: Thomas Louapre. Cover photo: Carole Gauthier (background), Alice Houdou (milk bottles). Cover illustration: Pronto.

To find out more go to page

29

Imagequestmarine.com

Olindias jellyfish Real size: bell is 5cm across

4

Nature

5

Jellyfish sometimes get washed up on the sand in the summer.

They look soft and fragile… but they’re not what they seem.

They’re awesome creatures in the water. Watch out for a jellyfish attack!

Rhizostoma pulmo

Real size: bell can be up to 50cm across Lives: in the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea

A. Nekrasov/Imagequestmarine.com

of the third kind

Jellyfish are made almost totally of water. They have no head, brain, heart, bones or tail.

Their jelly-like bodies are shaped like bells and contain a mouth and a stomach. From the bell’s edges hang poisonous tentacles that can be up to 35m long! The smallest jellyfish are tiny (with bells of less than 1cm) and the biggest can have a bell that’s 2.5m in diameter and weigh 220kg. These strange creatures look a bit like extraterrestrials!

6

Portuguese man o’ war (Physalia physalis)

Nature

7

Imagequestmarine.com

Real size: bell can be up to 30cm long Lives: in warm waters in the Atlantic Ocean. As it floats on top of the water and is carried by sea currents, it’s often seen quite far north. Its common name refers to a kind of 18th century armed sailing ship.

t a e r h t y l Ghost For at least 500 million years, jellyfish have haunted the oceans, pushed by currents, like ghosts.

Their transparent tentacles stretch out behind them, sometimes so thin that they are invisible.

Bad luck for any shrimps or fish that touch those deadly wisps‌

Cephea jellyfish

8

P. Kobeh

Real size: bell can be up to 40cm across Lives: in the Red Sea

Mastigias jellyfish

J. Yonover/Imagequestmarine.com

Real size: bell can be up to 20cm across Lives: in the Pacific Ocean in tropical areas

Jellyfish tentacles are covered in tiny stinging cells. These cells have a sharp sting and a sac of poison. At the slightest touch or pressure, the sting springs up, cuts the skin of its prey and the venom is injected into the cut. This poisonous liquid is so powerful that it can kill a shrimp immediately. The tentacles then slowly push the prey towards the mouth of the jellyfish‌ so it can feed.

Southern sea wasp (Carybdea rastoni)

DIY

Nature

More

P. 4 4

9

M o r e in

Text: M. BeyniĂŠ. Photo: Masa Ushloda/Imagequestmarine.com

Real size: bell up to 3cm across Lives: in the waters around Australia

DI

o am

Weird

touch o t o h P

up

and Pic Service/S

i pa

Sweet ! zebroggie

th New mou rne

Is this a new cross between a zebra and a frog?

No! It’s a photo that’s been touched up on the computer. Clever, isn’t it?

u Bo

One thousand spiders were found in luggage belonging to a British tourist leaving Brazil.

The spiders were alive, too! He was bringing them back to sell in his pet shop.

don2012.c om

being This huge tower is r the built in London fo es.

2012 Olympic Gam the It was designed by British artist Anish ill be Kapoor. Visitors w go up able to climb it, or ntastic fa in the lifts, to see views of the city.

Arup/Lon

Ch

n’s Londo er w new to

Cool!

Free meals in Korea!

2,700 volunteers got together in Seoul, the capital, to cook an

AFP/Non Da

a traditional dish made with radishes, cabbage and spices. They used 100 tonnes of cabbage!

i-Yeon

enormous kimchi,

Atishoo!

Right, Miss Harriet, show us this very rare parchment you have discovered…

Er… … you just blew your nose on it, Professor!

10

in

How is milk made?

We drink milk every day. But where does it come from?

Milk is made by cows that have calves. Then it goes to a dairy or milk processing plant.

12

Milk recipe 1 cow with a calf + 60–80kg of feed per day + 80–100 litres of water per day

Science

13

= 20 litres of mil k per day

You need a cow…

This is how a cow makes milk.

1. The cow digests its food.

Food is broken down in the cow’s stomach. The grass chewed by the cow is broken down into water, sugar, fat and calcium.

Those elements pass into the blood through the wall of the intestine.

Intestine

1 Blood vessels

Stomach

Milk producing cells

2. The electric milking machine

milks the cow.

This machine is attached to the cow’s teats. It copies the action of a calf’s mouth when it sucks. Like all mammals, a cow’s body is programmed to make milk to feed her baby.

3. The nerves are stimulated.

Pressure on the udder makes the nerves there send a message to the brain to say, “Suckling is beginning!”

Nerves

3

5 6

Udder Teat

2

4. The brain receives the message.

It reacts by releasing a hormone into the blood.

Hormones are special chemicals that the body makes. They send messages to other parts of the body to control how those parts act.

This hormone travels to the udders.

14

Brain

4

20 litres of milk

This is the amoun t of milk an average cow pr oduces in a day. Usually the cow is milked twice a da y. So it produces about 6, 000 litres of milk in a year.

The hormone causes the udder to make milk, using certain elements from the cow’s blood, such as water and calcium.

6. The milk flows.

The hormone makes the milk flow and also makes the four teats open. After 10 minutes the hormone runs out and the teats close up again. Each teat produces about 2.5 litres of milk at each milking.

Science

15

5. The udder reacts.

You need a dairy or processing plant Milk made by cows is treated here and put into bottles.

1. Milk is collected.

A tanker visits many dairy farms. It collects the milk and carries it to the processing plant (it was called a dairy when there were no machines).

The milk has to be kept chilled at 4°C to stop the bacteria in it from multiplying.

2. The milk is

checked…

Samples are taken to be analysed and the quality is checked.

3. … then stored.

This silo can hold 100,000 litres of milk, or the contents of several tankers.

4. The cream is removed.

The milk is warmed to around 50°C and spun very quickly in a centrifuge. This machine causes the cream to separate from the milk.

5. Some cream is put back…

The milk is then re-mixed with a precise amount of cream.

This produces standardised milk with a known amount of fat in it.

6. … and mixed well!

The milk is heated to 65°C and passed through a filter. This makes the fat globules smaller and more even in size.

The milk is now homogenised. The cream no longer rises to the surface.

16

Colour-coded bottle tops* Skimmed

Semi-skimmed Full fat

7a. The milk is heated up

fast!

It’s heated to 72°C for 15 seconds, then cooled. The heating-cooling process destroys bacteria. This is pasteurisation. Pasteurised milk must be kept cool and used within seven days or it will go off.

8. Last stage before the shops.

Pasteurised and sterilised UHT milk is put into bottles or cartons. There’s no air contact to avoid bacteria.

UHT MILK

UHT MILK

UHT MILK

UHT MILK UHT MILK UHT MILK

7b. The milk is heated more

* different counties use different colour codes for types of milk.

This is the volum e of milk that can be bottled in one day in a large milkprocessing plan t.

Science

Text: N. Tordjman. Illustrations: Pronto.

200,000 litres

17

and faster!

The milk can be heated to 140– 150°C for 2 or 3 seconds. Then it’s cooled. This is UHT (ultra heat treated) sterilisation.

Sterilised UHT milk must be stored at less than 15°C (so it doesn’t need to be kept in the fridge). It will keep for up to five months if the packaging isn’t opened.

ell of… m s t e e Sw

ROSES

Ch C amha om

o

The scent of roses has been popular with men and women since ancient times. Roses were first grown 5,000 years ago in China and Persia (called Iran today).

Nelson Mandela

came out of prison 20 years ago

DR

DR

in prison.

Mandela spent 27 years of black He fought for the rights ich had people in South Africa, wh believed that white people nt. It a racist white governme heid, ople and practised apart pe ck bla to r ow were superio all people down and didn’t a system that kept black ela and jobs. When Mand them access to education d lped abolish apartheid an came out of prison, he he untry. co became president of his

80 billion

Puffer fish don’t look very tasty…

Marion Montaigne

H e ll o p u ff e,r !

nvv

These are pieces of ostrich eggshells found in South Africa. Prehistoric people used these eggshells as containers 60,000 years ago.

Researchers think that the symbols carved on them may have been labels so people knew what was inside.

It may be an early form of writing.

pro Illustration: G. Cha

Pierre-Jean Texier/Diepkloof Projetct

What is it?

that are human beings of r be m u n e the time of This is th on Earth since to work ed liv e av h to t though not easy ancestors. It’s our prehistoric bers as there are no written m out the real nu middle of the 19th century. So e th l ti n u (worked out records guesstimates 8,000BCE l al e ar s re u these fig cts). In g rather than fa e 5 million using reasonin er w e started, ther when farming . By 1CE, there were 300 th humans on Ear was more than 1 billion. it 80 18 In . million n of us! almost 7 billio e ar e er th Today

But when they’re scared, they blow up like a ball…

… and that hurts!

O uc h !

18

Life

The true story

of Yuri Gagarin,

the first man

er 6/04/68 Paris Match, cov

in space

It

was 4 o’clock in t he and two engineers strapped him morning, the 12th of April, 1961, into his chair.

A ll the controls were in at the secret Tyuratam base in automatic mode so Yuri would Kazakhstan in the Soviet Union*. not be piloting. His job was to It was time to go.

Sergei Korolev, who built the keep a flight log, writing down Vostok spacecraft, put “I watched the horizon, the black his face up against Yuri Gagarin’s helmet visor and sky… and the stars! The Earth is kissed him on the cheek. surrounded by a beautiful blue…”

It’s not easy to kiss a cosmonaut** trapped inside his everything he saw and felt. A camera in the cabin would send suit! Korolev was very emotional.

Yuri reassured him and said images back to the base. with a big smile, “Don’t worry, – Lift-off!

Sergei. I’m about to do what human beings have dreamed of Vostok shook violently as it doing since the dawn of time. It accelerated. Yuri was calm. The different sections of the rocket will be fine!”

Then he turned to those around broke away into the atmosphere him. “All for one and one for all!” as planned.

Then the payload shroud flew Everyone cheered as Yuri went up in the lift to the cabin of the off. This was a special cover prospacecraft. Vostok was shaped like tecting the rocket during the a large ball, a little more than 2m launch. The cabin window was unwide. Fortunately Yuri was only covered and Yuri saw the Earth. It 1.59m tall! He boarded the rocket looked beautiful!

Illustrations: A. Soleilhac.

6.07am

20

* full name the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), used at that time for communist Russia and the countries it controlled. The Tyuratam base was used to launch Soviet spacecraft. ** meaning ‘astronaut’ in Russian.

21

History

V

ostok went into orbit around the Earth and Yuri experienced weightlessness, although he was safely strapped to his chair.

“What an amazing feeling!

Everything is swimming! I feel as if I’m hanging from my safety straps!”

In his flight log, Yuri noted that he had no problem drinking the water and eating the tubes of meat paste he had been given. But then his pencil floated away! How would he write? Luckily, he had a tape recorder.

Suddenly at 6.49am, everything we nt d a rk .

“Yoo-hoo! I have just T h e s p a c e come down from space and craft was now I need to find a telephone!” in the Earth’s shadow.

Back at the base, they were worried because Vostok was orbiting the Earth higher than planned. The spacecraft was * part of the spacecraft that would carry Yuri back to Earth.

370km above the Earth. But Yuri knew nothing about this and was amazed at what he saw.

“I can see the stars going by! It’s fantastic!”

T

he spacecraft had gone once around the Earth when Yuri felt it jolt and then steady itself as it prepared to return to Earth.

At 7.25am the retrorocket that would push the spaceship back to Earth fired up. Then it switched itself off and everything began to shake violently. Yuri knew that something had gone wrong…

The descent module* hadn’t separated from the equipment module as planned. He didn’t panic but sent a message to say that he could see the Mediterranean Sea as Vostok spun through space.

Finally, the separation took place, ten minutes late. The most dangerous stage of the f light

22

Y

uri was ejected from Vostok at an altitude of 7,000m, without so much as a scratch. His first parachute opened, followed by a second. He could see the River Volga through the clouds. At 7.55am Yuri landed gently on soft ground.

He was safe and sound!

He spotted a woman and a child in the distance. He waved wildly at them.

“Yoo-hoo! I’m a Soviet, like you, who has just come down from space and I must find a telephone!”

The woman and child were scared by this man in a space suit but they took him to their farm.

20th July 1969

1957 3rd November A dog called Laika was sent into space on board the Russian spacecraft Sputnik 2.

The Americans Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin walked on the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission.

1 12th April 198 1 12th April 196 Yuri Gagarin was the first man in space on board Vostok 1. The flight lasted 1 hour and 48 minutes.

First flight of the American space shuttle, the first re-usable spacecraft.

2012 The International Space Station (ISS) was started in 1998 and is going to be completed next year.

It’s the largest object in orbit around the Earth. r

Go to ou

: website

www. bayard-magazines.co.uk

History

23

began: re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere. Yuri could see a purple light around the edge of the window. The outside of the capsule caught fire but the spacecraft survived…

V

ostok hit the ground 4km from where Yuri landed. A farmer, Anatoli Michanine, saw a burning ball falling to Earth and a white parachute. He hurried over on his motorbike to have a look. He was the first person to touch the machine in which a man had flown into space.

Inside he found the tubes of food that would have kept Yuri alive for ten days: redcurrant jelly, meat puree, chocolate paste…

When the soldiers arrived at the landing site, all the local children had chocolate round their mouths!

P

eople all over the world listened to the radio and were stunned when they heard the news: “Yuri Gagarin, a 27-year-old Russian, has orbited the Earth in space!”

The news came as a surprise because the mission had been kept top secret. The Soviets were

afraid it might fail and they were worried about spies. Even Yuri’s family didn’t know! His wife Valentina was the only one Redcurrant jelly, chocolate who knew that paste… there was plenty of her husba nd food on board Vostok! had been chosen to be the world’s first cosmonaut.

But she didn’t know the date of the flight. She heard about it on the radio like everybody else, as she had breakfast with her two daughters.

Mo Mo

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Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet hero ● Yuri was born in 1934 in the Union of Soviet

24

History

sur

log le b Va

Labo

Ullstein/Roger-Viollet. Text: P. Bouchié.

Socialist Republics, the USSR. At that time, this huge country had a communist government.

Yuri went to school and then became a metal sur worker. He joined a flying club and to fly Va learned loghe was 20. b a plane. He joined the air force when e l s ● After the Second World War, the Bonu two superpowers, the USSR and the United States, were in a race to see who would get a man into space first. The Russians won when they sent Gagarin into the cosmos (meaning ‘space’ in Russian, we can use this word in English too). ● Gagarin received many medals and became a famous Soviet hero.

He died in 1968 in a plane crash.

Turn the page and pull out your poster

Our best friend! et Fact she amoyed Breed: S

Fact sh e

at 53–57cm : e iz s t l Adu ulders the sho s heepdog Originin: gs to the Samoyeedr belong ho herd reinde people w in Siberia gs * sled do pe: Nordic

Ty

h

ort * of the n

The puppy puts its ears back to show obedience to the adult dog.

Breed:

et

Finnish Lapphu nd Adult s the sho ize: 44–49 cm at ulders

Origin

belong : sheepdogs people ing to the Saa in Finla who herd reinmi nd deer

Type: N o

and gu rdic sheep dogs ard dog s

This male’s ears are pricked up and he’s looking into the distance to check for danger.

He’s protecting the puppy.

Male Lapphunds have a thick mane around their neck.

Shoulder

Finnish Lapphunds’ fur can be one, two or three different colours.

Dogs are pack animals

Our pet dogs are descended from wolves.

Like wolves, they’re pack animals, so are used to living in a group. This young Samoyed is showing the adult dog it will do as it wants. Later, it will think of its human master as the leader of its pack.

A leader provides food and must be obeyed. People who own dogs control what their pets eat, when they reproduce and even when they do wees and poos.

That’s why dog owners have to take their dogs out several times a day!

Nature

25

Klein-Hubert/BiosPhoto

Samoyeds’ fur is pure white or cream in colour.

Samoyed puppy with Finnish Lapphund

dogs Wolf family

Klein-Hubert/

No dogs at the South Pole

Bios

Chamo

Dogs come from wolves.

Wolves were some of the first animals to be domesticated (tamed) 10,000 or 12,000 years ago by prehistoric people.

They were nomads (travellers) and often came across packs of wolves on their journeys.

They adopted wolf cubs and fed them. These wolves then reproduced among the humans and the new cubs grew up more used to people.

Beware of the

Sled dogs played an important part when humans first started exploring the South Pole in Antarctica. But today, dogs are not allowed there.

People worry they might pass on deadly viruses and bacteria to the animals living there.

Dogs aren’t native to Antarctica.

Binek Radomil

Illustration: G. Long

dog!

This 2,000-year-old mos aic is at the entrance to a wealthy Roman villa in the ruins of Pompeii in Italy. The Latin words ca ve canem, mean ‘Beware of the dog’!

Countries with the most dogs These countries have the highest number of dogs per person:

United States: 1 dog per 4 inhabitants, or 77 million dogs.

South Africa: 1 dog per 5 inhabitants or 9.1 million dogs.

Brazil: 1 dog per 6 inhabitants or 30 million dogs.

Australia: 1 dog per 6 inhabitants or 3.4 million dogs.

UK: 1 dog per 8 inhabitants or 7.3 million dogs.

Japan: 1 dog per 10 inhabitants or 13.1 million dogs.

Russia: 1 dog per 12 inhabitants or 12.2 million dogs.

28 GEOATLAS® WORLD VECTOR - GRAPHI-OGRE® - France - 1997

Pics

& c ts

Look out!

It’s

Fa

allergy time!

Atishoo! Nostrils itching, eyes stinging and throat tickling.

It’s summer again and there are billions of pollen grains in the air.

They’re carried by the wind and people can become allergic to them*.

1,000m up in the air.

l’m a grain of pollen from a silver birch.

And you? Ash pollen!

Oh, l’m going down…

Good luck!

Choose a nice flower!

Here’s a strange flower…

Science

29

* one in five people is allergic to pollen from plants. It gives them what we call hay fever.

Pollen is a powder made by plants to fertilize them so they can produce seeds.

First the body becomes sensitive to the allergy….

They stick to the inside of the nose and release allergens…

YA Y! !!

YESSS!!!

Successful landing in flower!

lt’s humid! l’m going to explode…

YA Y! !!

Grains of pollen floating in the air get into the nose.

YAY!!!

… that get into the mucous membrane*.

But the blood’s white blood cells are on guard! Their job is to protect the body.

Hello? Blood vessels? l’m starting my shift in the mucous membrane…

Free at last!

Let’s find the heart of the flower!

Hey you!

Where’s your ID!

Wow! lt’s really humid…

Allergen?

Never heard of you…

You can’t be here!

?

Help!

Gulp! l’m destroying the intruder!

Little Red Riding Hood hasn’t noticed anything.

Make a note of this allergen in your files and tell your troops!

Keep alert!

These allergens may return!

Yes, Sir! 30

* A layer on the inside of nose and mouth which produces wet, slimy snot or saliva as protection against anything getting in.

A few weeks later…

At the back of her throat…

There!

An allergen…

Where are the flowers?

Look out! lt’s an invasion!

We need backup!!!

Where are the flowers?

Attaaaaaack!

Gotcha!

We’re here!

* a special chemical produced by the body to deal with allergies.

This time, Little Red Riding Hood does notice something is going on because she starts to sneeze.

Science

31

Release the histamine*!

Allergies can cause very strong reactions.

The battle rages…

ls it flu?

No, it’s silver birch pollen!

Out of the way!

Those guys are over the top!

Little Red Riding Hood’s body goes into overdrive.

Why do you say that?

Once they start, they can’t stop…

Usually, the army of white blood cells defends Little Red Riding Hood’s body from outside attack.

Some cells find and eat the invaders.

Others make antibodies. These are like weapons used to stop the invasion.

These ones use antibodies to fight flu or measles viruses…

They’re like soldiers!

And these guys help by producing histamine. This is a good defence against all kinds of illnesses.

The problem is that pollen grains just irritate the nose. They don’t harm the body…

But once the white cells recognize pollen as an enemy, they won’t stop until it’s all gone!

32

Meanwhile, outside…

Open the snot gate!

Make her cry to get rid of the pollen!

Little Red Riding Hood is also having problems breathing.

Clean out her lungs too…

What swollen eyes you have, my child!

The doctor asks some questions, then…

You probably have an allergy to pollen.

We have to do some tests…

Science

33

In the end she goes to the doctor.

Allergies can be managed.

There’s a different pollen in each drop so we can see what you react too.

20 minutes later…

You reacted to silver birch pollen. You’re allergic to it.

You will need to watch the pollen forecast…

Ow! That stings.

lt shows the amount of silver birch pollen in the air. You need to be careful on the days when the pollen count is high.

Here’s a prescription for antihistamines.

Take it on days when the silver birch pollen count is very high…

lt will stop your cells from producing histamine and giving you a runny nose.

What a big nose this child has!

34

A year later…

Oh dear!

The silver birch pollen count looks very high!

l’ve got bread, butter… and my medicine.

Here we go again…

Them again?

Look out!

Attaaaack!

Where are you, little flowers?

20 minutes later…

lt’s only pollen…

We have been told it’s okay.

Cool…

Quick, my medicine!

… all is calm again.

Where are the flowers, please?

THE END

Science

35

That’s one less.

Gulp!

Text: M. Beynié. Drawings: M. Roussel.

Nothing to report over here…

Ch a

m o

nk Seed ba

Over 3.5 millio around the worn seeds from in Kew, near Lold are stored ndon.

wind oject is a r p ic t is coast r This futu ill be built off the e. tw rn Europ farm tha e h t r o n y in of Norwa

49 wind turbines

The biggest is from Madagas this coconut smallest is an car. The orchid seed.

Hotels

Sang Tan/A

P/Sipa

52 000

This is the number of Roman coins found in an English field by a man with a metal detector.

The coins date back to the 3rd century when Britain was being invaded by barbarians.

Patrick Cerf

Crazy!

This glass door handle lets you see into a room even when the door is closed.

It’s a Japanese gadget that would suit James Bond!

P RO F E SS O R B A TT Y ’s mad machines This is a going-upstairs machine.

They’re kept at preserve them –20°C to for the future.

There we go…

Go and fetch it and put it away in the cupboard with the going-downstairs machine!

O. Scarff/Getty

Port for private yachts

Images/AFP

Wenn.com/Sipa

Shops

36

Tusko Livingroom Leopold

BY CORCAL

Stanley

Tarzine

I love trimming parrots’ feathers. They make multi-coloured confetti!

So, kids, are you enjoying your work experience?

Snip

Hairdresser

Oh, yes, Mr Macaw!

Yeah… but putting rollers on a hummingbird isn’t my favourite thing…

… and blow-drying a lion’s mane is scary…

sn ip

Bru sh

bru sh

bru sh

Grrr…

Don’t pull so hard, young man!

… and it’s exhausting to cut a porcupine’s bristles with clippers!

Chop chop

Great!

chop

Schl p schli

ip

schlip schlip

Call this a rest?!

h!

O uc

They really prickle!

Okay, Leo! If you need a rest, go and shampoo Mrs Longneck…

Hairdresser

y!

37

Ok a

K

L

Super fire engine This impressive new fire truck is an articulated* arm lift.

It has a platform that can stretch 32m up into the air to tackle fires and rescue people!

Control seat

Text: M. BeyniĂŠ. Illustrations: R. Dosne (lorry), D. Balicevic (firefighters).

A firefighter sits here. He controls the position and height of the platform and the flow of water to the water cannon. He can speak to the firefighter on the platform through a microphone.

Images taken by the camera fixed to the platform are sent to his screen.

Stabilisers

Hoses

These are connected to a water tanker that supplies water under pressure.

* having two or more sections connected by joints that allow the arm to bend.

These legs come out from the sides of the fire engine when it’s stationery.

They make the truck wider. This helps to keep the platform steady so the firefighter can work safely.

38

Piped water supply

32m

Water flows through this extra strong hose to the water cannon.

The arm lift

It’s made of a number of separate parts and can extend 32m. It takes 30 seconds to turn all the way round.

Articulated arm lift Length : 9.14m Width: 2.55m

Compartment for stretchers

(with stablisers: 6.20m)

Weight: 19 tonnes

The platform

It can carry up to five people.

It can pivot sideways to get round obstacles.

Hose compartment

Water cannon

World

39

Camera

It sprays 2–3,000 litres of water per minute! The fire fighter on the platform holds it by the handle and points it towards the flames.

Next month e

Scienc

World

Travel underground The three princes of to see the

y

Histor

J. Heydon

ph onal Geogra C.Peter/Nati

ic

Giant crystal cave

Serendip

+

A. Bureau

Ramses II and Nefertari

AFP

In Ancient Egypt visit

Optical illusions

Nature

DR

And lots more funfacts from me!

Incredible but true!

Duck-billed platypus Managing publisher: Christine Auberger. Editorial Manager: Elena Iribarren. Editor in Chief: Simona Sideri. Art Director: Pat Carter. Text and research: Liz Shepherd.

Editor: Caroline Pook. Sales and promotion: Andréa Chhan. Budget Controller: Vincent Delorme.

For editorial queries please contact: Bayard, 1st Floor, 2 King Street, Peterborough PE1 1LT. For a subscription in Switzerland: Edigroup SA - 39, rue Peillonnex - 1225 Chêne-Bourg (Switzerland) - tel: (0041)22 860 84 02 - fax: (0041)22 349 25 92 - email: abobayard@edigroup.ch DiscoveryBox is published by Bayard Presse S.A, a Limited Liability company with a board of Directors and Supervisory Board and a capital of 16,500,000 Euros and having its principal place of business located at 18 Rue Barbès, 92120 Montrouge, France. Board of Directors and Management Committee: Georges Sanerot (Board President and Publication Director), Hubert Chicou, Alain Auge, André Antoni (Managing Directors). Main Shareholders: Assomption, Saint Loup Ltd, N.D.S. Association.

Printers: Varoprinter, c/Artesania, Madrid, Spain and Allion printing co. Ltd, Hong Kong. Under law n°49956 of 16/07/1949 relating to youth publications. All rights reserved to the publisher © Images Doc, Astrapi – Bayard Presse. CPPAP: 0514 K 78793. ISSN 1366-9028 The name, surname and address of our subscribers are passed on to our in-house departments and all organisations under agreement with DiscoveryBox unless we receive a formal instruction not to do so from the subscriber, in which case the above information will only be used to carry out the subscription.

Such information may be accessed or modified by the subscriber as specified by the law.

40

s’ Readerv sur ey ey Every completed surv ize draw will be entered in a pr ceive and 30 readers will re a surprise gift!

Here are the ten last issues of DiscoveryBox:

146

147

148

149

150

151

152

153

154

155

List your three favourite issues.

1

Issue number:

2

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My least favourite issue is number:

I didn’t like it because:

41

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I love it

42

43

Photo: Thomas Louapre.

tip!

Games and quizzes

Games

Try these delicious summer salads.

A. Pelaudeix

or by email: contact@bayard-magazines. co.uk

Send us your artwork, jokes, animal questions and any other contributions by post to: DiscoveryBox, 1st Floor 2 King Street, Peterborough PE1 1lT, UK

t!

Cook i

Everything you need to know if you get stung by a jellyfish

Health

G. Lerouvillois

C. H端e

www. bayard-magazines.co.uk

Extra k at l to loo d ia r e mat nloa and dowt: a

Answers to more of your pet questions, as well as some useful information from the RSPCA about how to look after your pets in hot weather.

ail Your m

FInd out how far above us the International Space Station orbits.

ent m i r e p Ex

PUTS THE FUN INTO DISCOVERY

B. Liance.

44

water

Do

●

Health tip

Easy

Leave the wound exposed to the sun. Heat helps destroy the poison. ● Apply an anti-inflammatory cream from the chemist’s. ● Go to the doctor’s if it still itches after a few days.

●

and get out of the sea.

Don’t panic! Move away without touching it

Don’t

Rub your skin because you will crush any stinging cells left on your skin and cause them to release their poison. ● Take a shower. ●

If a jelly fish comes near you in the water…

Mini quiz

Answer in Readers’ DIY on page 51.

220kg

103kg

15kg

Jellyfish

can weigh up to:

Nature

Tap water will make the stinging cells explode and you will itch more. ● Pee on the wound. ● Try to suck up the poison.

It will burn your lips and tongue. ● Burst the blisters on your wound or make it bleed.

You have been swimming in the sea and you touched a jellyfish.

Ouch! Here’s what you should do… and what you should not do.

What to do if you are stung by a jellyfish

Rinse your skin with sea water where the jellyfish touched you.

This will wash away any tentacles still stuck there.

Use the plastic card to brush off the last bits. ● Rub sand gently on your skin and then wash it off with sea water to remove any stinging cells left.

● antiinflammatory cream

● a plastic card (bank card)

● sand

● sea

Text: M. Beynie. Illustrations: A. Pelaudeix.

You will need

45

Text: N. Tordjman. Illustration: A. Pelaudeix (butterflies and weeds), C. Hüe (picnic and fur trees).

gloves, uproot some young nettles and plant them in a tall glass container or an empty aquarium. Add some dry branches. ● Look for caterpillars among nettle plants in a park or garden. You will find Small Tortoiseshell caterpillars, Red Admirals and European Peacocks. Brush five or six big caterpillars off the plant and into a jar. ● Put the jar inside your container. Cover the container with a thin cloth or a metal mesh so the caterpillars can’t get out. ● Spray water into the container every two days. If the nettles start to wilt, plant fresh ones. ● Keep your container in a warm place and in a few weeks, the caterpillars will turn into butterflies!

● Using

Watch your own butterflies grow

Green idea

Go to: www.aqwa.com.au

Aquariums provide a showcase of life in our oceans. AQWA has one of the biggest aquariums in the world. Here you can explore 12,000km of Australia’s coastline, from the icy waters of the Southern Ocean to tropical coral reefs. If you’re not going to Australia soon, visit an aquarium near you instead.

AQWA in Western Australia

Amazing aquarium

All you need is some bread, butter and ham, a few tomato or cucumber slices…

Homemade nn sandwiches are better for you and cheaper than supermarket sandwiches. Wrap your sandwiches in the bag the loaf of bread came in, so you don’t create more waste. Don’t forget to take fresh fruit and a flask of water!

Green picnic

Eating outside!

Fir trees and other conifers (trees that make cones) do lose their needles. If you want proof, then look under a pine tree or a fir tree. The ground will be covered in brown needles. But, unlike trees with leaves, fir trees don’t lose all their needles at the same time. Needles can stay on a fir tree for several years. They’re tough enough to survive the winter. They fall gradually throughout the year.

Why don’t fir trees lose their needles?

Can you believe it?

1 drinking straw

●

1 pair of scissors

●

2 Lay the straw lengthwise next to the two islands with one end at the north of Corsica.

Sardinia

Corsica

Experiment

Quite easy

4 Cut out a 1cm-square of card and stick it to one end of the piece of straw.

Glue

3 Cut the straw level with the south of Sardinia.

Cut here

… and find out how far from Earth the astronauts (on the real space station) live.

Answer in Readers’ DIY on page 51.

2011

1981

1961

was completed in:

The International Space Station

Answer in Readers’ DIY page 51.

5 Then… when the glue is dry, stand the piece of straw on the globe with the card square facing up. The card represents the International Space Station orbiting the Earth.

Do astronauts really live that far from the planet?

Launch your space station

1 Find the islands Corsica and Sardinia in the Mediterranean Sea on your globe.

1 tube of glue

●

● some stiff card (Bristol board)

1 globe

●

Concept and text: M. Beynié. Photo: A. Houdou. Illustration C. Hüe.

46

Mini quiz

You will need

47

One of these shapes does not match the others.

Which one is it?

ODD ONE OUT!

Game

If you look at a photo of the Earth, it looks totally round. But it’s actually 12,713km at the poles, and 12,756km at the equator. So it’s not really round but more like a ball with a bulging middle. The bulge is caused by the fact that the Earth is spinning on itself.

It turns around its axis, a line running from north to south through the centre of the planet. Centripetal force (the force acting on spinning objects) makes the middle bulge out.

Is the Earth round?

Can you believe it?

DR

www.zincsports.com

These brilliant Street Gliders feature cool light-up wheels. They simply attach to your trainers enabling you to skate, glide and dance.

They’re so much fun!

Street Gliders have a clever system to adjust their width so one size will pretty much fit all. You must weigh under 55kg and of course, always wear a helmet, knee and elbow pads so that you don’t hurt yourself if you fall over!

Gliders to fit to shoes

Wheels on heels

Answer in Readers’ DIY on page 51.

Go to: www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/pws/invent/ weathermap

The Met Office which studies the weather (this is called metereology) in the UK has recently started to put pollen forecasts on its website. This is very useful for anyone who suffers from pollen allergies. They can check the forecast and then try to stay inside or take medicine to ward off a hayfever attack.

Check the pollen forecast

Look at this!

Just add boiled water to the bulgur wheat. Follow the instructions on the packet.

Finely cut the mint and parsley.

Add half a glass of olive oil. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Yummy!

This tabouleh is delicious!

It’s from Lebanon and Syria.

Shred the mint leaves.

Mix all the ingredients together and leave in the fridge for an hour before serving.

Peel and dice the cucumber.

is between:

little Greek-style yoghurts ● 1 cucumber ● 1 clove garlic ● 1 bunch fresh mint ● salt

●2

For khiar bi laban

Answer in Readers’ DIY on page 51.

Europe and Africa

Australia and New Zealand

North and South America

The Mediterranean Sea

Add 2 yoghurts and some salt.

Peel and crush the clove of garlic.

I prefer this one.

It’s called khiar bi laban in Lebanon, tzatiki in Greece and raita in India.

Try these two delicious salads that are enjoyed all around the Mediterranean.

Mix all the ingredients together and leave in the fridge for a couple of hours. Serve cold.

Finely dice the tomatoes and onions.

wheat ● 5 tomatoes ● 5 onions ● 1 bunch fresh mint ● I bunch flat parsley ● olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper

● bulgur

Summer salads

Easy

Mini quiz

For tabouleh

Cooking

You will need

48

Text: F. Descombe. Illustrations: G. Lerouvillois.

You will need

49

Go to: www.little-smiles.co.uk

Gagarin’s trip into space turned him into an international celebrity. In the same year he flew Vostok I, he visited England. On the 50th anniversary of his space flight, a copy of a statue of him that stands on the outskirts of Moscow will be put up in London (near Admiralty Arch, between the Mall and Trafalgar square). It’s a gift from the Russian Space Agency (Roscosmos) to the British Council.

This is a carpentry kit for kids and parents to work on together. Materials, screws and nails are included and the simple instructions mean even parents who aren’t great at DIY will be able to lend a hand. So go on, get sawing!

Long ago, some Native American peoples lived in teepees. They were nomads, travellers who roamed the land, following the buffalo herds they hunted. Their teepees were made of animal skin and were warm and cozy. A fire could be lit inside for cooking and the ground was covered in thick animal furs. Nowadays people everywhere love teepees and they have become like garden rooms for grown ups and children. These teepees are great for children (and their friends) to play away from the rest of the family and are a fantastic fun way to play in the shade when the sun is hot.

Go to: www.circus-stars.org.uk

Have you ever taken part in this brilliant summer reading project? It’s run by libraries over the holidays so look out for the logo. When you join up you will get a membership card and lots of fun gifts. The theme this year is the circus so you will also get a pop-up stage to make. As you read books over the summer you will get points and win stickers for your stage.

2011 Summer Reading Challenge

Have a read!

Go to: www.firebox.com

Suitable for ages 8+ under adult supervision.

Yuri Gagarin in London

See this!

Treasure chest kit

Make this!

Summer in a teepee

Outside living!

Rose Courtesy of Andrea

50

Would you like me to give your whiskers a trim?

First check the size of the bar your canary perches on.

Your canary’s claws should not be able to reach all the way round the bar! To be on the safe side, add two more perches to the cage. Choose one bar that’s 1cm in diameter and another that’s 1.5cm in diameter. Clean them regularly and don’t use sandpaper to cover the perches as it could hurt your canary’s claws. Every so often, file down its claws.

My canary often falls off its perch.

What can I do?

Canaries

Cats’ eyes are much better at seeing than ours, especially when there isn’t much light. But they also rely on their long whiskers and eyebrows to help them. These long thick hairs are very flexible and sensitive. They can feel changes in the flow of air and help the cat know where things are in the dark. They also tell the cat if it can fit through a narrow gap. If its whiskers don’t touch the sides, the cat knows it can fit its whole body through!

How does a cat find its way in the dark?

Cats

Your mail

Your mail

The RSPCA (Royal society for the protection of animals) has some tips for looking after your pets in hot weather.

• Never leave animals in a car during warm weather.

• Don’t let your pet get sunburnt.

• Make sure that all pets can get into the shade and always have plenty of fresh drinking water.

• Check your pets for fleas, ticks and mites.

• Check every day for flystrike. This is when flies lay eggs on an animal. The eggs hatch into maggots that eat the animal’s flesh.

Flies are attracted by dirty or wet fur and by cuts or scratches.

Flystrike is painful and can kill.

• Don’t over-exercise dogs in the heat.

• Keep indoor fish tanks out of direct sunlight and top up the water levels of ponds.

• Don’t leave pets alone at home when you go away on holiday.

Protecting animals in the summer heat

RSPCA tips!

Adult dwarf rabbits weigh between 800g and 1.5kg. If your rabbit weighs more than that, it may not be a true dwarf rabbit! Sometimes baby rabbits are sold as a dwarf variety even though they’re not… If your dwarf rabbit is just very fat, it may be eating too much because it’s bored. Play with it more and encourage it to run around.

My dwarf rabbit weighs 1.6kg. Is it too fat?

Rabbits

Pet questions

Illustration: C. Hüe.

Illustration: B. Liance.

Illustration: G. Lerouvillois.

51

1

a hose for watering plants 2 a roll of mint liquorice 3 an insect’s proboscis (sucking mouth)

What can you see?

1. B root; 2. B South America; 3. A a group of stars, gas and dust held together by gravity; 4. A 1815; 5. A iron; 6. B in other birds’ nests; 7. C a star; 8. A the biggest variety of plants and animals of any forest

Mega quiz

What can you see?

3. C – It was a seed starting to sprout.

DISCOVERYBOX 154

Answers to

• Mini quiz: Europe and Africa

World DIY page 48

• Game: The last shape on the right is the odd one out. The inner polygon has 1 more side than the outer one. In the other shapes the inner polygons have 1 less side than the outer ones.

To subscribe call + 44 (0)1858 438898 or visit our website: www.bayard-magazines.co.uk

The answers will also appear in your next issue.

www.bayard-magazines.co.uk

You can answer the back cover Mega quiz on our website from 1st July

• Mini quiz: 2011.

• Experiment: The square of card is the International Space Station (ISS). You cut the straw to represent a length of 420km (from the top of Corsica to the bottom of Sardinia). This is how far away from the Earth the ISS orbits.

Compared to the size of the Earth, it’s not very far at all!

Science DIY page 46–7

• Mini quiz: 220kg

Nature DIY page 44

• 1 in 5 people suffer from pollen allergies.

• A dog puts its ears back to show obedience.

• Yuri Gagarin was the first man in space.

Contents page

Answers

N. 155

MEGA QUIZ 1. Jellyfish use their stings:

2. Yuri Gagarin made his journey into space in:

A

to see

A

1961

B

to eat

B

1971

C

to poison their prey

C

2011

3. Dogs are:

4. A common name for pollen allergy is:

A

wolves

A

hay fever

B

rodents

B

asthma

C

pack animals

C

influenza

5. The body fights illness with:

6. Milk is pasteurised:

A

deep breaths

A

to make it fresh

B

a sneeze

B

to kill any bacteria

C

white blood cells

C

to make it white

7. Gagarin’s spacecraft was called:

8. Dogs are not allowed in:

A

Apollo 11

A

Antarctica

B

Sputnik

B

the United States

C

Vostok 1

C

Europe

Answer this Mega quiz from 1st July at www.bayard-magazines.co.uk

lots more cards to collect

DiscoveryBox 1st Floor, 2 King Street Peterborough PE1 1LT United Kingdom

Collect your pull-out cards every month!

What am I?

In your sue next is

I have a head but no body, a heart but no blood, leaves but no branches.

What‛s this?

Sayings

Nature

Sayings

Lettuce

What’s the difference?

Onion

What do we mean when we call someone

Grasshopper or cricket?

What do we mean when we say

“a wet lettuce”?

It’s a cricket. These insects have long antennae. Females have a sword-shaped organ on their abdomen (mid section), which they use to lay their eggs.

“they know their onions”?

Grasshopper have short, stiff antennae.

Answer: It means the person knows what they’re talking about, they’re experts.

Photo: Aprifel

Photo: Academic.ru

Photo: Aprifel

Game

Sayings

Game

Riddle

Peas

What can you see?

I’m a lettuce!

What do we mean when we say

A mouse under a mushroom!

Answer: We use it to describe someone who’s not very brave.

Test your friends and family.

See if they can work it out!

“they’re like two peas in a pod”?

Test your friends and family.

See if they can work it out!

Answer: We mean that they’re exactly the same or identical.

Illustration: R. Saillard

Photo : Aprifel

Illustration: R. Saillard

Nature

Cheetah or jaguar?

Photo: Cockscomb Sanctuary, Belize

Sayings

Potatoes

“small potatoes”?

Answer: We use it to describe something or someone that isn’t important.

Illustration: Aprifel

Your age:

What do we mean when we say something is

Write to DiscoveryBox!

Cheetahs live in Africa.

Their fur has solid black spots.

Write your joke, animal question or any other contribution on this card and post it to us.

It’s a jaguar. These big spotted cats have black markings on their fur called ‘rosettes’.

They look like flowers. Jaguars live in South America.

Your name:

What’s the difference?