Happy Wednesday!
Meteor shower alert! 💫 See if you can spot 2 meteor showers happening this week, starting tomorrow!
Here’s what we’ve got this week:
TRIVIA
Food Trivia 🍔
Which food stays in your stomach the longest?
Explanation at the end!
ANIMAL FOCUS
Komodo Dragons 🐊
Their bite is super dangerous! Komodo dragons have sharp, iron-tipped, saw-like teeth about 1 inch long. These teeth help them rip into their prey. They also have venom that can make animals go into shock! 🐊
They have an amazing sense of smell! Komodo dragons use a special organ on the roof of their mouth to “taste” smells. They can detect blood from up to 6 miles away! 🩸
They wear natural armor! Under their scaly skin, Komodo dragons have tiny bony plates. These plates act like built-in chainmail to protect them from attacks. 🛡️
They can run faster than most people! Even though they’re huge (up to 350 pounds!), Komodo dragons can sprint up to 12 mph for short distances! 🏃
They’re great swimmers! They can hold their breath for up to 15 minutes and swim between islands using powerful tail strokes! 🤿
EVER WONDER?
How do planes fly? ✈️
A huge plane like a Boeing 747 can weigh more than 400,000 pounds. So how can something that heavy fly?
The four forces that make a plane fly 🚀
When a plane moves through the air, four forces are always working:
Thrust: the engines push the plane forward
Drag: air pushes back against the plane
Lift: the force that pushes the plane upward
Gravity (or Weight): the force that pulls the plane down
How wings create lift 🪽
The wings are curved on top and flat on the bottom. As the engines push the plane forward:
Air moves faster over the top of the wing
Air moves slower under the wing
This creates lower pressure on top and higher pressure underneath. That difference in pressure is called lift, and it pushes the plane upward!
Staying up or staying level 🛫
Pilots can adjust their speed and flaps on the wings to adjust the lift.
If lift is stronger than gravity, the plane rises
If lift and gravity are equal, the plane stays level in the sky
BRAIN TRIVIA
Sudoku: each row, column, and 3×3 grid must contain the numbers 1-9 with no repeats.
Min Li | The Nature Photography Contest 2025
Thanks for reading! Stay curious!
- Steve
P.S. Pork (4.5 hours) stays in your stomach the longest, longer than cheese (3.5 hours, depending on the type of cheese), chicken (3 hours), beans (2 hours), and broccoli (1 hour)!
P.P.S. Have an animal or science question you want us to feature? Just hit ‘Reply’ and tell us!