Whizz Pop Bang Science Magazine for Kids! Issue 69: RADICAL ROMANS by Whizz Pop Bang

Take our aqueduct engineering challenge

RADICAL

Build a cake arch

ISSN 2399 -2840

THE AWESOME SCIENCE MAGAZINE FOR KIDS!

Make your own writing tablet

ROMANS

Science and engineering in Ancient Rome Cons a cat truc ap t

ult

Makek moc n Roma s n i o c WHIZZPOPBANG.COM ISSUE 69

EXPERIMENTS PUZZLES AMAZING FACTS SCIENCE NEWS

WELCOME!

Salve! That’s how Romans said hello.

*That’s a Roman saying meaning

‘Seize the day!’

I can’t wait to get stuck into some Roman engineering!

Riley

facebook.com/whizzpopbangmag

HE if i cE t uR r t l e sT t e r rV O N! MROeO m S R a r kH aW ObLVE l e

instagram.com/whizzpopbangmag

Find out how scuba c gear works en

Create a Moon phase guide

twitter.com/whizzpopbangmag pinterest.com/whizzpopbangmag

a di p w i t h

Laun

na ch into lu

Exp

lor

e c o

c r s

HE SAY W

Moon map poster

LL OT L- O

whizzpopbang.com

THE AWESOME SCIEN CE MAGAZINE FOR KIDS!

Ta k e

ee f s !

ol c ora

ls an es d crazy c r e atur

Meet a reef-saving researcher LOUS ARVEL ERS T AKE M

M ON CRA MO

MAKE A

E 62 OM ISSU PBANG.C WHIZZPO

Craft your ownAZ IN G FACT S

ES AM PU ZZL erwater EN TS und EX PE RIM world

EXPERT SCIENCE ADVISERS

As well as our writers, we also have a team of science advisers who help to ensure that our content is accurate, up-to-date and relevant. Our advisers include: palaeontologist Steve Brusatte; molecular microbiologist Matt Hutchings; robotics engineer Abbie Hutty; mechanical engineer Amiee Morgans; GP Dr Cathy Scott; astronomer Mark Thompson; physicist Dr Jess Wade; child psychologist Dr Naira Wilson. To find out more, go to whizzpopbang.com/about

SUBSCRIBE!

Meet a Moon mission astronaut

hello@whizzpopbang.com

! R KIDS ZINE FO

GA CE MA

E SCIEN

ESOM THE AW

ISSN 2399-2840

GET IN TOUCH

Editor-in-Chief: Jenny Inglis Editor: Tammy Osborne Assistant Editor: Tara Pardo Designers: Rachael Fisher and Simon Oliver Illustrator: Clive Goodyer Staff writer: Joanna Tubbs Contributors: Sarah Bearchell, Anna Claybourne, Claire Cock-Starkey, Ned Hartley and Joe Inglis

REE ALWS COR NE SCI EN CEIN A JAR

WHIZZPOPBANG.CO

M ISSUE 60 EXPER IMENT S PUZZL ES AMAZ ING FACTS SCIEN CE NEWS

WHIZZ POP BANG is only available by subscription. If you haven’t subscribed yet, simply go to whizzpopbang.com and sign up for as little as £3.33 per magazine, including UK delivery. Back issues are available to purchase at whizzpopbang.com/shop With the help of Whizz Pop Bang magazine, just imagine what your child might one day discover!

GROWN-UPS

EDUCATORS

Welcome to WHIZZ POP BANG – the magazine bursting with enticing articles, mind-boggling facts and hands-on experiments to get your child hooked on science! Whizz Pop Bang is a gender-neutral magazine with plenty of inspirational male and female scientists and content that appeals to all children.

The magazine is ideal for home educators and it’s linked to the national curriculum too, for use in schools. Whizz Pop Bang will help with literacy development as well. Transform science teaching in your school with our hands-on science and reading resources. Our downloadable lesson packs link fun science experiments and reading with key curriculum topics for years 2-6. Subscribe at whizzpopbang.com/schools

All experiments have been tried and tested by our team. The activities should be done under close adult supervision and are done at your own risk. Launchpad Publishing Ltd cannot accept liability for damage done.

Indicates content linked to the National Curriculum

Unit 7, Global Business Park, 14 Wilkinson Road, Cirencester, GL7 1YZ Printed in the UK by The Magazine Printing Company using only paper from FSC/PEFC suppliers www.magprint.co.uk

© 2021 Launchpad Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents of WHIZZ POP BANG without written permission is prohibited. Illustrations: © 2021 Clive Goodyer

Gakk

Where you see this symbol, use a QR code reader on a phone or tablet to visit a relevant web page.

WHIZZ POP BANG is made by:

This issue we’re travelling ba ck in time to explore the epic engineering achievements of the radical Ro mans! As well as marvelling at their impressive designing, building and inventing skills, we’re als o looking into their toileting habits – check out our Silly Science page for some rather stinky facts! There are loads of Roman makes and experime nts this issue too – make your own Ro man writing tablet, build a cle ver miniature catapult, engineer an awesome aqueduct and bake a triumpha l cake arch. Carpe diem*!

Emmi

CONTENTS

AWESOME NEWS AND AMAZING FACTS

A spinning space hotel, glow-in-the-dark sharks and a super-plant that soaks up pollution.

EPIC ENGINEERING

Take our aqueduct engineering challenge, build a cake arch and make mock Roman coins!

ANIMAL ANTICS

Discover the predator that Romans used as a symbol of power and courage: the majestic eagle.

SILLY SCIENCE

Poo-ey! Take a trip to the loo, Roman style, and find out what it’s like to use the toilet at the same time as your friends!

ey rg Se

Ur ya

iko v/

Sh u ttersto

ck.com

EMMI’S ECO CLUB

Make your own Roman writing tablet from cardboard and dough!

PULLOUT

Cut out and make three bridges, then test which is the strongest.

INTERVIEW WITH A SCIENCE HERO

Meet Alex Mather, the Civil Engineer who designs bridges for her job! M

at he

oth

/S hu tt

m .co ck to rs

Al ex

HOW STUFF WORKS

Find out how an onager catapult flings heavy payloads, then construct a catapult using lolly sticks!

TEN AWESOMELY AMAZING…

things the Romans did for us. There’s a lot to thank them for (including recycling, rabbits, reading and writing and more!).

SENSATIONAL SCIENTISTS

Hypatia used her amazing mathematical brain to teach and inspire Romans despite difficult circumstances.

Y’S WONDER CLUB

Ask our robot, Y, your burning science questions and share all of your adventures in science with the club.

I’d love to see pictures of your experiments! Send them to Y@whizzpopbang.com

Atom

QUIZ POP BANG AND COMPETITION

Test your knowledge with our super-duper science quiz and win an Architectural Engineering kit!

JOKES AND ANSWERS

Laugh out loud at some awesome jokes and find the answers to all of our quizzes, puzzles and riddles.

SPECTACULAR SCIENCE

Take a look inside the gigantic Colosseum, an incredible feat of Roman engineering.

FIND THE SCIENCE EQUIPMENT Hidden on each double page is a piece of science equipment. Tick each one to find the complete kit!

s Awesome New cts and Amazing Fa

Scientists at the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) have found a bush that can help to reduce air pollution. After comparing the ability of different kinds of hedges to soak up exhaust fumes from heavy traffic, they declared the hairy-leaved Cotoneaster franchetii to be the winner. This ‘super-plant’ traps harmful particles from car exhausts, improving the air quality near busy roads. Previous studies have shown that air pollution is very dangerous for people’s health. “We know that in just seven days a 1-metre length of well-managed dense hedge will mop up the same amount of pollution that a car emits over a 500-mile drive,” said Dr Tijana Blanusa, RHS Principal Horticultural Scientist.

4 whizzpopbang.com

Every pet dog, from dachshunds and Dalmatians to Pekingese and pit bulls, evolved from wolves. Now scientists have worked out where and when it first happened. By looking at dog and human DNA, along with archaeological evidence, they estimated that grey wolves were domesticated in Siberia (now part of Russia) during the last Ice Age, around 21,000-17,000 BC, following a period of dramatic climate change. When temperatures dropped, wolves and humans helped each other to survive – wolves scavenged for food around human camps and humans started to feed them. These first domesticated wolves would have chased wild animals away from their new home, protecting their human friends, whom they now relied on for food. Over time, their DNA gradually changed until they became a whole new species – the first dogs.

ons

‘Super-plant’ soaks up pollution

FROM WOLVES TO DOGS

Spinning space hotel

The world’s first space hotel is due to begin construction in 2025 and open for business just two years later. The Voyager station will hurtle through low Earth orbit like the International Space Station. Guests will stay in pods attached to a giant spinning wheel. The wheel’s rotation will generate artificial gravity – the faster it spins, the stronger the gravity. The designers plan to set the level at that of the Moon – about a sixth of the Earth’s gravity. This will enable some out-of-this-world fun, like low-gravity basketball! Guests will also be able to go on spacewalks. Parts of the space station could be used by NASA and ESA for space research. How old will you be in 2027 when it’s due to open?

Four-year-old spots dino fossil A fossilised dinosaur footprint has been discovered on a beach in South Wales. Lily Wilder, aged four, spotted the footprint in a rock on Bendricks Bay while out walking with her dad. “This fossilised footprint from 220 million years ago is one of the best-preserved examples from anywhere in the UK and will really aid palaeontologists studying early dinosaurs,” said Cindy Howells, curator at the National Museum of Wales. It’s very difficult to tell which animals left fossilised footprints, but Cindy thinks this one could have been made by a small early dinosaur, or possibly an ancient ancestor of the crocodiles.

SHARK

Marine researchers have discovered a deep-sea shark that glows in the dark. The kitefin shark lives in the twilight zone of the ocean off the coast of New Zealand, 200-1,000 metres below sea level. Very little sunlight reaches this deep, so it lives in darkness. Many deep-sea animals produce light using bioluminescence – chemical reactions in their bodies. But this shark is the largest bioluminescent vertebrate animal ever found. The researchers think the shark might use its glow to light up the ocean floor while hunting for prey. Or alternatively it might use it as a form of camouflage against the bright surface of the water, so that it can sneak up on prey undetected.

GLOW-IN-THE-DARK

By A

rne ou

EPIC ENGINEERING

a Clayb nn

The Romans were BRILLIANT at engineering – designing, building and inventing things. They copied ideas from earlier civilisations, like the ancient Greeks, then added their own new bits.

Ours has columns and a pointy roof!

Ours has columns, a pointy roof, three storeys and a giant dome!

STONE ARCHES

The arch is a great example of Roman engineering. Simple stone arches already existed – people had used them for hundreds of years to make stone bridges and doorways. But the Romans realised they could change the design and use them for lots more things.

HOW ARCHES WORK A stone arch is made of wedge-shaped blocks fitted together. The block in the middle is called the keystone. Once it’s fitted in, all the blocks are held firmly in place. Arches can support weight on top, such as a road.

ROMAN ARCHES

Arches on top of columns.

Triumphal arch A big, decorated arch used as a grand gateway or memorial.

Segmental arches, which were not a full semicircle. Often used to make bridges.

6 whizzpopbang.com

How did Romans cut things up? With a pair of Caesars!

THE COLOSSAL COLOSSEUM

BUILD A CAKE ARCH

There were even whole buildings made up of arches, like the Colosseum, an enormous amphitheatre (say am-fi-theatre) – a round, open-air theatre in Rome.

Stone is a bit heavy and hard to cut, so try building your own arch using cake instead!

The Colosseum was bigger than a football pitch, as high as a 16-storey building, and could hold 50,000 people.

You will need: • A cake about 3-6 cm deep • A knife

• A clean tray • Scissors

What you do: 1. Cut out the block template on page 19.

Yay!

2. Put the template on the cake and cut around it to make a wedge-shaped cake block. Repeat until you have seven blocks.

Boo!

3. Use the blocks to build a cake arch on the tray. You could even add decorations to turn it into a triumphal arch!

240 arches Romans came here to watch fighters called gladiators battling against each other or against wild animals.

ROMAN DOMES The Romans also used another great invention – concrete! It might seem modern, but concrete goes back thousands of years. The Romans’ version contained volcanic rock and ash, making it extra-strong. They used it to build the first concrete domes.

Like an arch, a dome’s shape gives it strength.

The Colosseum still stands in Rome today.

The Pantheon is an ancient Roman temple with a concrete dome.

VITRUVIUS uty! *Strength, usefulness and bea

It had a roof called a velarium, made of sails that could be rolled out to provide shade.

Roman engineer Vitruvius designed many buildings and machines. He said that all structures should have three qualities…

Firmitas, utilitas, venustas!*

THE ROMAN EMPIRE 2,700 years ago, Rome was a small village in what is now Italy. Gradually, it grew into a big city. Then it began to take Empire over the areas around it, creating the great Roman Empire, which reached all the way to Britain!

ROMAN ROADS

By the year 117 AD, the Roman Empire covered parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. Britannia (Britain)

Rome Main Roman roads

As they went, the Romans used arches to build bridges over rivers, and tunnels through hills.

Curved shape, or ‘camber’, to let water drain off.

To help them conquer new areas and get around their empire, the Romans built roads. Before the Romans, most roads were just muddy tracks. But a Roman road was strong, hi-tech and built to last, with layers of stones and sand, topped by flat paving slabs.

BUILDING ALL THOSE ROADS WAS A BIG JOB!

No one wants a wonky road!

This is a groma, used to check right angles and straight lines.

Uuurrgh, these are heavy!

This road is taking ages! Flat surface stones

Sand and gravel Ditch

Kerb held the road in place

Pebbles Rubble and cement Rocks

ROAD ROUTES

The Romans built more than 80,000 km of stone-paved roads. That’s enough to reach twice around the world!

You’re a Roman general and you need to march your army from Urbs to Oppidum along the lovely new Roman roads. But which route is quickest? (Tip: use a ruler!) Check your answer on page 34.

GET IT STRAIGHT Roman roads are famous for being as straight as possible. But why? • A straight line is the quickest way from A to B!

Urbs

• It uses up the smallest amount of materials. • You can see what lies ahead, so an ambushing army can’t hide around the corner!

ROMAN RUINS

As well as roads, the Romans built new cities, bridges, temples, walls and houses all over their empire. You can still see many of them today. Maybe there are some Roman buildings near you…

sex nor Roman Villa in Sus Dolphin mosaic at Big

Oppidum

Ho usesteads Ro ma n fort in Northumbe rland

imedia Commons

Shutterstock.co © Laurence Gough /

ester tone Edge near Manch Roman roa d at Blacks imedia Commons © David Dixon / Wik

Where did the Roman general keep his armies? Up his sleevies! calle d St. Albans Roman wall in Verulamiu m, now ons

WONDER WORDS

The Romans spoke an old language called Latin. As their empire spread, so did Roman words. Lots of English words today are based on Latin.

Can you match these Latin words to their English meanings? Tip: see if each word reminds you of anything! Check your answers on page 34.

CANIS

FIRE

IGNIS

NIGHT

LIBER

WATER

LUNA

DOG

NOCTIS

BOOK

AQUA

MOON

All Roman roads were straight.

TAKEOVER!

The Greeks, the Romans, the Spanish and many other people have taken over other lands to claim as their own. But why? If you were a leader, would you try to create a big empire, or stick to your own area?

whizzpopbang.com 9

SPLISH SPLOSH!

The Romans were VERY big on keeping clean. They had public baths, laundries, toilets, fountains and drains to carry waste water away. But these things all needed a supply of fresh running water. aqueduct! Enter… the aqueduct Mountain spring.

Water flowed downhill in channels made from stone or Roman concrete.

AQUEDUCTS The aqueduct was a Roman engineering masterpiece. It was a channel that carried water into a city from a mountain spring or a reservoir made by damming a river.

Some parts of an aqueduct ran underground.

What was the Romans’ favourite bird? The aqueduck!

To cross a valley, the Romans built bridge aqueducts.

Inside, the aqueduct had one or more water channels.

AQUEDUCT ENGINEERING CHALLENGE Get your engineering hat on and try to construct an aqueduct!

You will need: • Lots of card and/or cardboard • Sticky tape • Scissors • Chairs, boxes and books • A ping pong ball or other small ball • A small bowl

What you do: 1. First, identify your problem. You need to build a channel to take water from one place to another, using just the power of gravity. Choose a high-up place to be your spring or reservoir, such as a windowsill or table top. Put your bowl on the floor at the other side of the room. The bowl is your ancient Roman city, waiting for its water supply! 2. Next, plan how to solve the problem, using card to make lengths of channel for your ball to roll down, so that it lands in the bowl. (You’re using a ball instead of water, so your cardboard doesn’t get soggy!) How will you make the channel slope downhill, and make sure the ball doesn’t fall off? Draw a plan showing how you think it could work. 3. Time to start building! Cut strips of cardboard to make lengths of aqueduct and tape them together. You can use chairs, boxes or books to support the aqueduct. It must slope enough to keep the ball moving, but if it’s too steep the ball will go too fast and shoot out of the bowl. Can you get it just right? 4. The next step is to test and improve your aqueduct. If the ball is moving too fast at the end, can you think of any ways to slow it down?

10 whizzpopbang.com

When it’s finished, take a photo and send it in to Y’s Wonder Club! Y@whizzpopbang.com

n to ! om

IN THE BATH Public baths were a big part of Roman life. Romans went there to get clean, but also to meet friends, chat and gossip. A Roman bathhouse had several different areas, heated to different temperatures.

I hear Atticus is building an extension.

The furnace burned fuel and hot air spread under the floors. The rooms and baths nearest the furnaces were the hottest.

Aaaahh, toasty!

Floor held up by pillars.

Water from an aqueduct flowed through the pools.

A system called a hypocaust heated the bathhouse.

Brrr, freezing! Hot room, confusingly called a caldarium! Cold outdoor pool, or natatio

Tepidarium (warm room) Frigidarium (cold room)

Changing room, or apodyterium

ROMAN MINTS

No, not mints that you eat! All over their empire, the Romans had mints where they made coins. To make a coin, they put a disc of silver, gold, copper or bronze between two harder metal ‘dies’ with back-to-front pictures and writing on them. Then they hit them with a big hammer, squashing them together and stamping the coin on both sides. See coins being made like this here: bit.ly/3dLLEkw

Excuse me, I think that’s my toga…

MAKE MOCK ROMAN COINS! Roman copper coins often look greenish, because they have reacted with oxygen in the air. To make your own ancient-looking coins, put a paper towel in a bowl with some copper coins on top. Mix a teaspoon of salt into some vinegar until it’s dissolved, then drip this onto the coins. Over the next few hours, the vinegar will help the copper to react with the air, turning your coins turquoise.

Roman mints © Claudio Divizia / Shutterstock.com and Olivier Dufour / Shutterstock.com

AL ANIM S TIC

Eagles

This month our vet Joe Inglis is marching out with his Roman eagle standard to find out more about these ultimate avian predators.

Eagles are large and powerful birds of prey. There are around 60 species found across the world, with most living in Europe, Asia and Africa.

Something fishy

To help them find their prey from high up in the air, eagles have evolved amazing vision. Some eagles have eyesight that is more than three times as good as a human’s, meaning they can spot their dinner before their dinner spots them and runs away.

stock.com

Eagles are often divided into four groups based on their diet or appearance. Fish eagles (also called sea eagles) hunt fish from rivers or the sea, snake eagles prey on reptiles, harpy eagles swoop around tropical forests, and booted eagles… have feathery ankles!

Eagle eyes

A Philippine eagle, which hunts monkeys, lemurs, bats, rodents and reptiles in tropical rainforests © Sergey Uryadnikov / Shutterstock.com

Legal eagles Many species of eagle around the world are threatened due to hunting, pollution and loss of habitat. Conservation programmes and anti-hunting laws have saved several from the brink of extinction, including the famous bald eagles of North America.

12 whizzpopbang.com

Don’t you know that’s ill eagle!

Eagle nests can weigh as much as cars.

218 cm

The wingspan of the white-tailed eagle, the largest wingspan of all the eagles

Big breakfast With powerful beaks and super-strong talons, eagles are awesome predators, and are able to tackle prey many times their own size. An African martial eagle was seen killing an antelope weighing 37 kg – more than six times as heavy as the bird.

Up, up and away! As well as attacking big prey and eating them on the ground, eagles can also carry surprisingly heavy loads into the air. North American bald eagles are the strongest in the world and can fly with animals as heavy as small dogs!

tterstock.com

Dive-bombing Once they’ve spotted a target, eagles dive down at speeds of more than 160 km/h before grabbing their prey with their talons and either flying off or landing to feed. Their hooked beaks are perfectly adapted for ripping flesh, making short work of their unfortunate prey.

Which of these is the eagle’s shadow? Circle your answer and check it on page 34.

Room with a view Eagles live in large nests called eyries (say ear-ees), usually built high up on cliffs or in treetops. Most species lay two eggs, but the larger chick often attacks and kills their weaker sibling so only one bird is reared.

how Roman Studying toilets helps us to understand se ancient loos! society worked. Get the lowdown on the Romans shared communal toilets. They were long benches with holes cut into them above channels of flowing water. The holes were usually only about 50-60 cm apart, so you’d have to get pretty cosy with your neighbours!

It is thought that explosive gases might have sometimes flared up from Roman toilets, caused by methane building up in the sewers underneath.

How many birds can you see? Check your answer on page 34. Roman mosaics are made of geometric blocks called tesserae. Tessellation is when shapes fit together in a pattern with no gaps or overlaps.

14 whizzpopbang.com

Toilet

T a l e s!

Romans didn’t have toilet paper. Instead, they used a sponge attached to a stick, called a tersorium. They would dip the sponge into a shallow channel of running water, then push it through the narrow slit at the front of the bench to wipe themselves. Sometimes, sponges were kept in a bucket filled with saltwater and vinegar, which can kill some bacteria and viruses.

Sponges were mainly used by higher-class people. The lower classes used small stones or bits of broken pottery to clean themselves!

At home, Romans had pots to wee into. They emptied the pots into larger urine jars in the streets. These were collected and the urine was used to wash clothes! They had to leave the urine for a few days until it broke down into a chemical called ammonia, which is still used today in many modern cleaning products.

Romans thought demons were everywhere – even in toilets! Some thought they could cast spells on you to make you sick, so toilets often had shrines in them to the goddess Fortuna.

Roman toilets didn’t have S-shaped bends, like modern toilets do, which meant there was nothing to keep out flies, rats and smells.

Houses also had private toilets for poo, which were usually in the kitchen! They were also used to dispose of food scraps. People flushed these toilets with buckets of water. When the pits filled up, they would need to be emptied.

What do you call a dog that you find in the toilet? a Roman A letter to ed Lucilius official call an ow a Germ describes h a d nce shove gladiator o is ge down h toilet spon to g in v a void h throat to a ht g fi arena to go into an al. a wild anim

A poodle!

The word ‘plumber’ comes from ancient Rome. Pipes were made of ‘plumbum’, which is the Latin word for lead. A plumber was someone who worked with plumbum pipes.

b... clu O C E

Emmi's

MAKE A ROMAN WRITING TABLET You will need:

Paper used to be very expensive, so Romans used a tablet (called a tabula) filled with beeswax as a reusable, portable writing surface. Let's make our own tabulae using homemade salt dough instead!

• Unprinted corrugated cardbo ard For the salt dough: (e.g. an old cardboard box) • 80 g plain flour • A ruler • 10 g cocoa powder • A pencil • 2 tsp oil • A craft knife • 40 g salt • Yellow and brown paint • ¼ tsp cream of tartar • Paintbrushes (optional) • A fork • 120 ml cup water • PVA glue • A chopstick or sharpened stic k

Draw two rectangles measuring 13 cm x 20 cm onto the cardboard using a pencil and ruler, then draw a 2 cm frame inside one of them. Ask an adult to cut them out using a craft knife.

Put a large blob of brown paint onto a saucer then dip the back of the fork into it. Drag the back of the fork down the pieces of cardboard to create a wood effect. When the paint has dried, stick the frame on top of the rectangle, unpainted sides together. Let them dry, then put them under a stack of books to flatten them.

16 whizzpopbang.com

Paint the two pieces of cardboard light brown (add a small blob of brown paint to a larger blob of yellow paint). Leave them to dry. Mix the flour, cocoa powder, oil, water and cream of tartar together in a bowl. Ask an adult to help you put it in the microwave for 20 seconds, then take it out and stir it well. Repeat this several times. Alternatively, heat in a saucepan over a medium heat for a few minutes. First, it will go lumpy and then it will form a ball of dough.

Continued on page 21 ➜

PULLOUT ROMANS BRIDGE STRENGTH TEST Make your own bridges and find out which is the strongest.

PULL OUT PAGES 17-20 AND GET MAKING!

You will need: • • • •

The paper templates Glue stick Scissors Lots of coins of the same value

What you do: 1. Cut out the templates on page 19. 2. Fold the base (template 1) along the dotted lines and stick the ends into place with glue. 3. Place template 2 on top of the base to make a beam bridge.

Beam bridge

4. Place the coins, one at a time, in the centre of the bridge. How many coins can the bridge hold without collapsing? Write your answer into the table below. 5. Now bend template 3 into an arch. Place it inside the base and replace the top to make an arch bridge. 6. Add the coins, one at a time, to the centre of the bridge. How many coins can the bridge hold now? Write your answer into the table.

Arch bridge

7. Remove the bridge top and arch. Fold template 4 in an accordion style and place it on the base to make an accordion bridge.

8. Add the coins, one at a time. How many coins can the bridge hold now?

Bridge 1. Beam 2. Arch 3. Accordion

Number of coins

Design and make your own bridge to test - see some examples on page 18.

Accordion bridge

You should find: The beam bridge holds the fewest coins. The weight of the coins is squashing down on the columns at the ends of the beam. At the same time, the bottom edge of the beam is being stretched. Every bridge has to deal with these forces – known as tension (stretching) and compression (squashing). Arches are stronger and can support heavier loads. Roman engineers used segmental arches to build bridges and aqueducts (see page 6). The third bridge holds the most coins because triangles are one of the strongest shapes. This is because they are hard to push or pull out of shape.

whizzpopbang.com 17

Look at the different types of bridges. Can you design and build your own versions? You could make a simple truss bridge using rolled up paper or paper straws and sticky tape, for example.

Beam

Arch

Suspension

Truss

Cantilever

Cable

Find all of the Roman numerals in this sentence and add them up. What is the answer? Write it here and check it on page 34.

IN THE SUMMER, EMMI WENT TO CANADA AND SAW A MOUNTAIN LION AND SIX RACCOONS!

1 2 3 4

I II III IV

5 6 7 8 9 10 50 100 1000

V VI VII VIII IX X L C M

18 whizzpopbang.com

I’ve heard people are phasing out Roman numerals... Not on my watch!

Riddles Check your answers on page 34.

1. If you wrote the Roman numeral for 9, how can you draw one line to make it 6? 2. How can half of 9 be 1 plus 3?

3. Two sisters are standing at each end of a bridge, facing in opposite directions. When one sister waves, the other one waves back. How did the second sister know the first one was waving?

Template 1

Template 2

Template 3

Template 4

For the cake arch activity on page 7.

whizzpopbang.com 19

I bought some London bridge trousers, but they kept falling down! 20 whizzpopbang.com

Use the chopstick or a sharpened stick as a stylus (writing tool) to write a message on your tablet. Push the dough with your fingers to erase it and write a new one! You’ll need to keep your tablet in a plastic bag or box so that the dough doesn’t dry out.

When the dough has cooled down, knea d it until it’s nice and smooth. Push about half of it into the tablet – it should fill it to the leve l of the frame. You can store the rest in the fridg e.

I’d love to see your tabulae! Take a photo and email it to Y@whizzpopbang.com

ECO

ideas...

write notes Using your tablet to e less paper! could help you to us paper is Another way to save at has only to save any paper th e. Cut it all been used on one sid it together to the same size, clip hey presto d with a bulldog clip an – you’ve made an upcycled notebook!

Continued from page 16

Fi nd out wha t th is mea ns on pa ge 2! You'll fi nd m ore Lati n words to w rite on yo ur tabu la on pa ge 9.

It’s up to us to save the planet. Lots of small actions can make a BIG difference! Instead of the wood small effect paint, cut out r pe pa squares of scrap e and glue them to th spired frame in a Roman-in mosaic design.

whizzpopbang.com 21

➜

Interview with a SCIENCE HERO

In my job I get to... design bridges!

Alex uses her engineering skills to design bridges from the planning stage through to their construction. If you have any questions of your own for her, you can contact her on alex-mather@live.co.uk

Alex Mather Civil Engineer

“

”

I’ve always loved science!

When I was growing up, I was so curious about the world around us. I wanted to know how we could solve different problems, which is what inspired me to become an engineer! I studied maths and physics at college, then civil engineering at the University of Leeds. I learned about construction, demolition, architecture and designing environmentally friendly skyscrapers. I found out about different infrastructure all over the world and how it is used to help people. I wanted to help design and construct these wonderful creations.

“

Being a civil engineer is are fun because no two days the same...

”

dges to check that Some days, I inspect bri – no missing bricks or they’re in safe condition and they’re not about blocks, cracks or leaking, s to show my team to fall down! I take photo ecking concrete bridges, later on. When we’re ch hammer, listening for we hit parts of it with a t the bridge is hollow a sound that tells us tha s of concrete will have inside. Sometimes flake called ’spalling’, which broken away, a process er. On other days, I makes the bridge weak project problems with attend meetings to solve lways or highways. engineers working on rai designs for bridge parts At other times, I draw up programs. using special computer

There’s a lot to consider when designing a bridge.

22 whizzpopbang.com

”

types, from huge We design all sorts of different small bridges bridges for roads or railways to lots of different for people to walk over. We use or steel, and materials, for example concrete nt shapes. My bridges come in all sorts of differe can withstand ge job is to make sure that the brid it, such as people, the different forces exerted on snow! It’s great cars, trains and even wind and e to life. being able to see my designs com

out how to make sure Alex talking to students ab the large numbers of that cities are designed for the future. people who could live there in

Interview with a SCIENCE HERO

“

I worked on an exciting mega-project – a three-tier roundabout!

”

At a busy roundabout in Newcastle, cars that wanted to drive straight ahead got delayed in the traffic wanting to go left or right. The solution? To build a road going under the roundabout, and one going over, so the cars going straight didn’t need to use the roundabout at all! This means shorter journey times, less car exhaust gases, cleaner air and happier drivers.

pection in Cumbria.

“

We have to look after endangered wildlife on some of our projects!

”

Never stop learning...

If you’re wondering what you’d like to do when you grow up, try as many new things as you can and you will find your passion. At first, I was interested in chemistry, then I found out about chemical engineering. This led me to civil engineering, which is my true passion!

t te

The three-tier roundabout in Newcastle that Alex helped to design.

“

idge ins Alex completing her first br

”

Alex is a member of WES, the Women’s Engineering Society. Read more about other inspiring women engineers here: bit.ly/38rohJq

It was a surprise to learn that we were inspecting old bridges over rivers full of endangered pearl mussels! When I need to inspect bridges over rivers, I have to wade through the river. A bathyscope (a big underwater magnifying glass) makes sure that pearl mussels will be safe before I start wading through. Environmental specialists sometimes come on inspections to make sure our work protects local wildlife. It’s great to learn more about the creatures living close by and help to keep them safe.

e river by this bridge.

Pearl mussels live in th

whizzpopbang.com 23

HOW STUFF

WORKS

Roman Catapults For more than 2,000 years, mechanical catapults have been used in wars around the world. The Romans were masters at using these fearsome machines to attack and destroy their enemies’ strongholds. Here’s how they worked…

Make your own catapult You will need: • • • • •

2 lolly sticks A thick marker pen 2 small rubber bands 1 plastic milk bottle top, or similar Hot glue gun

What you do: 1. Ask an adult to help you stick the bottle top onto the end of one of the lolly sticks using hot glue, then lay this stick on top of the other one and tightly wrap one of the rubber bands around both sticks several times, about 1 cm from the end.

A TRIGGER rope holds the arm in position ready to fire.

In the cup is the object the catapult is firing, called the payload. This type of catapult fired heavy stones.

2. Lift up the other end of the top stick and push the marker pen between the two sticks until it is almost touching the rubber band. Now push the top stick down until you can loop the second band around both sticks, then slide this band up to the marker pen. 3. To fire your catapult, load the bottle top with a payload, such as a ball of paper. While holding the marker pen still, press the top stick right down as far as it will go, then let go! ry moving the marker pen forwards 4. T and backwards and see how that changes the angle the catapult launches at and how far it will fire. What angle shoots your payload the furthest?

At the other end of the arm is a CUP.

When the trigger rope is released, the energy stored in the twisted rope accelerates the arm and payload upwards.

The arm stops suddenly when it hits the CROSSBAR, leaving the payload to fly out, towards the target.

This type of catapult was known as an onager and was used to attack defensive walls by firing heavy payloads straight at them.

2 A winch pulls the arm down, twisting the rope, which stores all the energy used to turn the winch handle in the fibres of the rope.

The main structure of the catapult is a solid frame made from wood.

A strong twisted rope holds one end of the catapult arm.

whizzpopbang.com 25

g... in z a m A ly e m o s e w A 0 1

A M O R E H THINGS T s to thank the Roman We have a lot more d bridges... for than just roads an

Before the Romans, there was no reading and writing in Britain. In 2016, archaeologists discovered ancient writing tablets buried under a tube station in London, dating from the time of the Roman invasion. They are thought to be from Britain’s first school.

Fast food might seem like a modern invention, but the Romans were big fans. They bought hot food from a thermopolium – an ancient takeaway restaurant.

Rabbits are native to Spain and France, but recent analysis of a bone found in a Roman palace in Sussex suggests that they were first brought to Britain by the Romans in the first century AD.

There is some evidence that the Romans introduced stinging nettles to Britain. They are said to have beat themselves with nettles to relieve painful joints. That might sound like a strange thing to do, but a modern study found that it might actually work!

The Romans invented the first locks that contained internal projections so that they could only be opened with the matching key – they often wore these as rings to show everyone they were rich enough to have valuables locked away.

26 whizzpopbang.com

Ouch! Thanks a lot, Romans!

S U R O F D I M A NS D

Pivoted scissors, like the ones we use today, were invented by the Romans around 100 AD. Before that, people used spring scissors.

The Romans introduced us to lots of our favourite fruits and vegetables, including apples, pears, cherries, grapes, plums, carrots, celery, cucumbers, turnips, as well as herbs and spices.

Ancient mosaics have revealed that the Romans invented the bikini! Roman women wore bikinis for sports rather than swimming.

Archaeologists have found evidence from Pompeii that the Romans were recycling their rubbish thousands of years ago. Rubbish was piled up outside the city walls then collected, sorted and reused as building materials.

Doesn’t sound as good as Whizz Pop Bang!

The ancient ancestor of Whizz Pop Bang, the Acta diurna (meaning ‘daily events’) was the first newspaper! Copies were carved on stone or metal and distributed around towns. It included news about gladiatorial contests, notable marriages and deaths, military news and astrological omens. © 1. MOLA, 2. Dima Moroz / Shutterstock.com, 3. William Booth / Shutterstock.com, 4. Saurav Bahuguna / Shutterstock.com, 5. Ab5602 / Creative Commons, 6. Wellcome Images / Wikimedia Commons, 7. MonikaKL / Shutterstock.com, 8. Andreas Wahra / Wikimedia Common, 9. ancient Roman frescos in Pompeii / Wikimedia Commons.

Sensational Scientists

Hypatia By Claire Cock-Starkey

Hypatia (say hy-pay-shuh) was one of the first women to teach maths, astronomy and philosophy. She earned widespread respect for her intellect and her determination to continue teaching during a time of religious and political upheaval.

Hypatia was born in about 350 AD in Alexandria, Egypt. Egypt

Hypatia’s father was a mathematician. Hypatia worked with him creating new and improved versions of ancient Greek texts. Soon Hypatia was so good at maths that she was seen as the greatest mathematician in Alexandria. Alexandria, where Hypatia lived, was one of the most important centres in the Roman Empire for philosophy. Hypatia was not only a great mathematician; she was also a philosopher and astronomer. She taught students from all over the Roman Empire and often gave public lectures.

One of the most important libraries in the ancient world was in Alexandria, but years of fighting between people of different religions had caused the building to be destroyed. The last few scrolls were stored in the Temple of Serapis, but this too was torn down in 391 CE.

What is philosophy? Philosophy is the study of the key questions about the world, such as: What is the meaning of life? What is reality? Do we have free will? How should we behave?

Hypatia was determined to preserve and improve the ancient Greek books on mathematics and philosophy that were saved from the library. She created new versions of many important old texts, making sure this ancient knowledge was not lost.

Astrolabes are handheld models of the universe which can be used to calculate astronomy problems. With her amazing mathematical brain, Hypatia taught her students how to design their own astrolabes.

At the time, people believed that the Sun orbited the Earth – it would be many hundreds of years until Nicolaus Copernicus would suggest it was the other way around. Building on the work of the great astronomer Ptolemy, Hypatia created a better method of long division to work out the position of the Sun and the Earth.

Spot the astrolabe in this scene. Check your answer on page 34. One of Hypatia’s pupils, Synesius, described her in a letter to his friend.

Hypatia is a person so renowned, her reputation seems literally incredible.

Hypatia was also considered extremely wise. As a result, many people, including religious leaders and politicians, sought her advice. Unfortunately, this meant she got drawn into the political and religious squabbles which were causing many problems in Alexandria. In 415 AD, Hypatia was attacked by a mob of Christians and killed, sending shockwaves through the Roman Empire and causing many other scholars to flee Alexandria.

Today, Hypatia is celebrated as a feminist icon who continued teaching and inspiring others, despite the turbulent times she lived in.

whizzpopbang.com 29

Email me at Y@whizzpopbang.com

der Club! Welcome to Y’s Won to share your This page is for you with our adventures in science hizz Pop Bang robot, Y, and other W atured on readers! Everyone fe an this page will receive e! enamel pin badg

D E A R Y, What

really happens when you get pins and needles?

Atharva, aged 10

F oR

CURIoUS K I DS They worked really well!

Paraesthesia (say par-as-theesee-ah) is certainly a strange feeling, Ath arva! It happens when the blood sup ply to your nerves is cut off by sitt ing or sleeping in an awkward pos ition. Without a blood supply, your nerves stop sending signals. First, you notice a feeling of numbness - it’s as if your hand or foot has gone to sleep! Sometimes you get a tingling feeling as your body starts to make ner ve signals where there are none. When you release the pressure, the blo od flow returns to normal which can make your nerves overreact, giv ing you prickly-feeling pins and nee dles. Paul, aged 7, with had great fun kit ig d r u sa o the din . He 65 e su Is from ome es made this aw a! m ra io dino d

Arnav, aged 8, made these oil lamps out of oranges for Diwali, the festival of light (from Issue 64).

7, Emma, aged 4, ed ag , ca n ia and B ing the enjoyed mak okies co t n dino footpri 65. e su Is from

I found a pattern! As more water was added, the pitch became lower. And I had great fun making some tunes too. has Beth, aged 8, ing at ig st ve in been e th g how changin er at w f o amount cts in a glass affe the pitch.

Y’s Wonder Club Badges Collectable enamel badges for you to earn!

Help local wildlife to earn your Wildlife Watcher badge.

Investigate scientific questions to earn your Super Scientist badge.

Help save the planet to earn your Eco Hero badge.

H I! How do people knowets

Joey, aged 7, has invented a new board game to teach people how to look after hedgehogs in their gardens. It’s called Hedgehog Highways and you can download everything you need to play the game on Joey’s ‘Helping the Planet’ website bit.ly/3d5KVKt

about Earth-like exoplan that are millions of light years away? Lyla Grice, aged 10

I want to tell people about it so they can play it and learn how to look after hedgehogs.

magnets, if rotated co rr attract themselves? ectly,

Alexandre, aged 11

loves Biel, aged 6, ing and birds. science, read Whizz Pop Since getting mas, he’s st Bang for Chri ads of fun lo g in been hav gs, like this making thin ur from sa walking dino . e Issu 65

oks Read any good science bo ol co recently? Done any experiments? Write to Y@whizzpopbang.com to tell us all about them!

Hi Alexandre! Well, this is pretty complex, so let’s start with a simpler idea. When you stretch an elastic band, the work you do puts potential (stored) energy in the band. When you release the force, the elastic band snaps back, because things move in the direction which reduces the amount of potential energy. A magnetic field is a kind of potential energy. Pushing together like-poles (N-N or S-S) takes energy, so the magnets push apart (repel) to reduce the potential energy. When you put two unlike-poles together (N-S), the potential energy in the magnetic field is reduced, pulling the magnets together (attraction). Check out what happens if you cut a magnet in half at bit.ly/2Nx1ipc

Get problem solving to earn your Epic Engineer badge.

You’ve won a binder!

Great question, Lyla! Some exo planets (planets outside our solar system) can be seen with a telescope from Earth. This is because big planets ma ke their stars move as they orbit around them, so astronom ers just need to target their search around ‘wobbly’ stars. Sm aller Earth-like exoplanets have been found using the Kep ler space telescope. It identified over 4,000 Earth-size d exoplanets in the habitable zones of their stars, suggesting that the Milky Way contains around 40 billion Earth-sized pla nets which could support life… and the closest is just 12 ligh t years away! Kepler was replaced in 2018 by TESS (Transi ting Exoplanet Surveying Satellite), and the hunt continu es!

Leo, aged 8, 6, and Alex, aged n fu f had a lot o own making their 65). e u ss (I s dig kit

AS K Y, How do

STAR LETTER

Henry, aged 6, loved the Tricky Tyrannosaur and Walking Dinosaurs from Issue 65!

Send your experiments, ideas, photos, reviews and questions to Y@whizzpopbang.com or Y, Whizz Pop Bang, Unit 7, Global Business Park, 14 Wilkinson Road, Cirencester, GL7 1YZ. Don’t forget to include your name, age and address. We can’t return any post, sorry.

To find out how to earn your badges, go to whizzpopbang.com/wonder-club. Schools can get involved too! Find out how here: bit.ly/39xNQqV More badges will be launched soon... watch this space!

whizzpopbang.com 31

How much can you remember from this issue?

um/ Test your M to Dad/rabbit

see what they know!

What is an astrolabe? a) A handheld model of the universe

What is the name of the world’s first space hotel, due to open in 2027? a) The Big Wheel

n underwater b) A magnifying glass

b) Rocket resort

c) A shuttle for sending dogs into space

Booted eagles get their name from...

a) Their boot-shaped

nests

c) Voyager

What is the block in the middle of a Roman arch called? a) The keystone

kles

b) Their feathery an

y c) Their thick, leather

How long is the Colosseum?

b) The lockstone

legs

a) 50 m

Roman numerals, hey... what are they good IV?*

c) The headstone

What does the Latin word plumbum mean?

b) 188 m

a) An illness resulting from eating too much fruit

c) 258 m

b) A sunburned bottom c) Lead

l Vitruvius said al ld structures shou ities. have three qual ? What were they auty

a) Resistance, be and height

ulness b) Strength, usef and beauty

An onager is a type of...

a) Catapult

b) Roman sold ier c) Toilet brush

ors and windows

c) Walls, flo

Need a hint? Find the answers by reading these pages… 1) Page 29 2) Page 5 3) Page 12 4) Page 6 5) Page 35 6) Page 15 7) Page 7 8) Page 25

Answers on page 34.

I scored: .......... 1-3: You’re a great Gladiator! 4-6: You legendary Legionary! 7-8: You’re seriously Senatorial!

* Turn to page 18 if you need a hint before you chuckle!

Test your knowledge with our super-duper quiz. Just tick the answers you think are correct, mark them using the answers on page 34 and then add up your score. If you need some help, check out the hints at the bottom of the page.

A mosaic is a picture or pattern created from lots of small pieces of coloured materials. The Romans used stone, tile, pottery and sometimes glass or precious metals for their mosaics on floors and walls. We want you to make your own mosaic using old magazines, wrapping paper or other scraps of paper to be in with a chance of winning one of four fantastic engineering kits.

! IN

Magnificent mosaic!

* Turn to page 18 if you need a hint before you chuckle!

Tip: Draw a simple outline of your picture onto a piece of card (an old cereal box is perfect).

t i k g n i r e e n i g n e l a r u t c e t i h Arc Design and build towering arches, soaring spires and complex domes with this awesome kit from thamesandkosmos.co.uk. Start with basic structures and work your way up to big, complex models of some of the world’s most interesting buildings – stadiums, skyscrapers, a ferris wheel and more! Children under eight will need an adult to help them.

Send a picture of your mosaic to win@whizzpopbang.com with ‘Roman competition’ as the subject of your email. Alternatively, post your entry to Roman competition, Whizz Pop Bang, Unit 7, Global Business Park, 14 Wilkinson Road, Cirencester, GL7 1YZ.. Please don’t forget to include your name, age and address. Deadline: May 8th 2021. UK residents only. Full terms and conditions available at whizzpopbang.com. Issue 67 competition winners Thank you to all of you who sent in your entries to our Mars habitat competition. Your designs were out of this world! These four lucky winners will each receive an Alien Robots engineering kit from thamesandkosmos.co.uk

Anna Graziani, aged 11

Dylan Swanson, age

Laura Haylett, aged 6

WINNERS

d8 Dhyaana Haria, age

whizzpopbang.com 33

JOKES Who refereed a tennis match betwee n Nero and Caesar? A Roman umpire!

I struggle with Roman numerals until I get to 159. Then it just CLIX!

Ship’s captain: I can’t remember how to write 2 in Roman numerals. Crew: I I captain!

Page 7 – True/Untrue

Page 12 – True/Untrue

TRUE: The Colosseum is still standing, although parts of it have fallen down.

TRUE: The nests built by bald eagles from sticks can weigh up to 900 kg, similar to a small car!

Page 9 – Road routes puzzle

Which famous Roman suffered from hayfever? Julius Sneezer!

Where would you find Hadrian’s Wa ll? At the botto m of his garden!

Answers

Page 13 – Eagle shadow puzzle

Page 29 – Astrolabe puzzle

The correct shadow is 5.

The astrolabe is here:

Page 14 – Tessellation puzzle

Urbs

There are 42 birds. Page 18 – Roman numerals puzzle

Oppidum

Page 9 – True/Untrue UNTRUE: They made them straight where possible, but some had curved bits. Page 9 – Wonder words puzzle Canis Ignis Liber Luna Noctis Aqua

Dog Fire Book Moon Night Water

Highlighted in red are each of the Roman numerals in the puzzle: IN THE SUMMER, EMMI WENT TO CANADA AND SAW A MOUNTAIN LION AND SIX RACCOONS! 1+2000+2001+100+1+51+9+200 = 4,363 Page 18 – Riddles 1. Draw an S. The Roman numeral for 9 is IX, so adding an S at the start makes it SIX in English. 2. Cut the Roman numeral IX (9) in half horizontally to make the Roman numeral IV (4).

3. The sisters are facing in opposite directions, but facing each other!

Page 32 – Quiz 1) a 2) c 3) b 4) a 5) b 6) c 7) b 8) a Back cover – How many snails? There are 9 snails.

The Colosseum was opened in AD 80 by the emperor Titus with 100 days of games, during which more than 2,000 gladiators were killed.

science

SPECTACULAR

The Colosseum

Rome’s Colosseum is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, at 57 metres tall and 188 metres long. For 500 years, it was the scene of fights with exotic animals, executions of prisoners, recreations of battles and gruesome gladiator contests. The arena was a wooden floor covered with sand, above an elaborate ‘hypogeum’, a network of tunnels and cages where gladiators and animals were held. There were shafts, elevators and pulleys to provide instant access to the arena.

! R KIDS ZINE FO

Roar!

MOON!

Create a Moon phase guide

Lau

nch into lunar

sci

SAY

ISSN 2399-2 840

SCIENCE

H O W O LV W

Exp

MAKE YOUR OWN FOSSIL DIG KIT

EX PE RIM

EN TS

AM AZ ING PU ZZL ES

Craft a

RIME NTS EXPE E 65

OM ISSU PBANG.C WHIZZPO

FACT S

SCI EN CE

Find out how scuba gear works

cora

ls a es nd c razy c r e atur

Meet a reef-saving researcher

Back issueS ELLOUS KE MARV S

ROARSOME walking dinosaur

FOR KIDS!

R ea r ka b l e ef s !

lor

monsters historic PLUS pre sea and air of the

Which dinosaur are you? Take our quiz!

MAGAZINE

t u r tl e s

Re m I

Gian

OVER THE

DINtOs!

Moon map poster

OT L- O

Meet biggest dinosaur ever known

THE AWESO ME

Ta k e a d i p w i t h

Moon mission r ri f i c astronaut t e

3D T. rex ILLUSION

! AZINE FOR KIDS E SCIENCE MAG THE AWESOM Meet a

GA CE MA the

E SCIEN

ESOM THE AW

Create a

ISSN 2399-2840

SHOP ONLINE

We’ve got some awesome products in our online shop!

MA ATER MOON CR

Craft your ow

underwatn world er

MAKE A CORAL REEF IN A JAR

MAGAZINE BINDER

ISSUE 62 OPBANG.COM

WHIZZP EXP ERIM ENT WHIZZPOPBA NG.COM ISSUE S 60 SCIEN CE NEW S PUZ ZLE S AMA ZING ZING FACT S FAC TS SCIE PUZZ LES AMA NCE NEW S

NE WS

LAB COAT

BOOKS SUBSCRIBE NOW whizzpopbang.com/subscribe