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Do insects sneeze, cough, or hiccup?

That’s funny to think about, but the answer is no. All of those reactions take place only in breathing systems that are similar to ours. Insects breathe through tiny holes in the skin, so they have no reason to sneeze, cough, or hiccup.

How do cows produce milk?

A cow’s special four-chambered stomach breaks down grasses she eats into things that nourish her and produce milk.

The first chamber softens chewed plant material, which the cow burps up and chews again several times. In the next chamber, microorganisms feed on the plant material, making energy and proteins. As the material moves through the other chambers and into the small intestine, nutrients and excess water are absorbed into the bloodstream and then circulate to the mammary gland in the udder.

There, special cells combine the nutrients with sugars from the cow’s liver to create milk.

Cows, goats, and other ruminants are valued around the world for their ability to digest low-nutrient grass and use it to make nutritious milk and meat.

Why is the sky blue?

The sky is blue because the air scatters blue light from the Sun across the sky and down to our eyes.

We think of air as being clear and transparent, and it is. But air is made up of countless tiny objects, mostly molecules of nitrogen. When sunlight goes thousands of miles through our atmosphere, a tiny amount of light becomes scattered by these objects.

White light is made up of all colors of light. Nitrogen molecules scatter blue light more than they do the other colors. So a little bit of blue light bounces around in the sky and then enters our eyes. That makes the sky look blue.

Why do people get white hair?

Each strand of hair is made by a part of the skin called a hair follicle. The color of the hair comes from a chemical called melanin. The follicle adds melanin as it makes the hair. For many of us, the hair follicles stop making melanin as we age. Hair looks white or gray because of the lack of added color.

Moffat reunion marks 50 years since school was open

David Stone | Our Town Temple April 26, 2023

It’s been 50 years since students last roamed the halls of Moffat School, and that final graduating class was honored on May 6, 2023, during a reunion celebration.

Now known as the Moffat Community Center, students who graduated in the Class of 1974 were honored at the homecoming, said Cheryl Hinckley, a member of the Moffat Community Center Association board.

David Coufal, who attended Moffat School from 1965 to 1971, said the original structure opened to students in 1881 and was not located at the same site as the current Community Center.

“The original Moffat School was in a different location, and the frame structure burned down in the early 1900s,” Coufal said. “The best we can tell, the current building was constructed in 1909 and dedicated the following year. We think classes were held in a local church for about three years before the new school was built.”

The number of grades the school offered varied over the years, but at one time it housed students in first through 12th grade.

“1929 likely was the last year students graduated from high school at Moffat,” Coufal said. “For a time, the school served students through eighth grade, and later sixth grade was the last year. After their sixth-grade year, most students went to Belton but some went to Gatesville, Temple, Moody or a few other places.”

Like the number of grades, the student population of Moffat School fluctuated over the years.

“Usually 40 or 50 kids went to Moffat School, but there were years where we had 60 or more,” Coufal added. “Schools in Bland and Owl Creek closed after Lake Belton was created, so Moffat grew.”

Belton Independent School District annexed Moffat and its school during the 1973-74 school year, then conveyed the property to the Moffat Community Center Association at the end of the year, according to Hinckley.

“The old building was vacant for nearly 40 years, but we replaced the roof in 2006 by taking donations from the community,” Coufal said. “People had an interest in preserving the old school. It’s an important piece of Moffat history.”

In June 2010, under the leadership of Edgar Bounds and a band of dedicated volunteers, efforts to renovate Moffat School got under way.

“We upgraded electrical wiring, installed central heat and air, cleaned out decades of debris, repainted and rebuilt the old barbecue stand,” Hinckley said. “We spruced up the outside, renovated restrooms, removed very smelly carpet and replaced the pavilion. We also added a building to store equipment.”

Today, the renovated school is the Moffat Community Center, and it once again serves as a hub of activity for one of the oldest communities in Bell County.

“The center is well used,” Hinckley said. “It hosts weddings, birthday parties, family reunions, memorial services, baby showers and fundraisers for the Moffat Community Center Association.”

Why do dinosaur names end in -saurus?

Almost 200 years ago, when people started studying dinosaurs, the giant fossils reminded them of bones from small lizards that exist today. When scientists made up names for the animals, they used the Greek word sauros, which means “lizard.” In fact, the term dinosaur is a combination of the Greek words deinos (“terrible”) and sauros, so it means “terrible lizard.”

Since then, scientists have discovered many dinosaur skeletons and can tell that dinosaurs were not giant lizards. In fact, they are related to birds. But the dinosaurs still have their original names. Changing the names would be confusing for anyone who tried to compare old and new articles about them.

Why do cats lie on paper?

We have not seen a scientific study that tried to answer this question, so we asked Dr. Bonnie V. Beaver, a veterinarian specializing in feline behav ior. According to Dr. Beaver, some people think cats just like the crinkly sound of paper. Others think it may be the location that the cat likes, rather than the paper. The paper may just happen to be on the cat’s preferred resting spot! And there certainly are cats who will sit or lie on paper or other objects just to get our attention.

Why do we lose our voice?

That can happen when our vocal cords become irritated. The vocal cords are two folds of tissue near the top of the airway. When air from the lungs passes between them, they vibrate, making the sound we call our voice.

But if strain or infection makes them irritated and swollen, they vibrate differently. That can cause a raspy, “hoarse” sound that may be difficult to hear. Some people call that “losing your voice.”

Source: https://www.highlightskids.com/explore/science-questions/ —SPJST—