Science Q & A

After careful consideration and research, here are the answers to some of your most pressing science questions!!

How hot is the sun?

This is a very good question. It is impossible to stand on the sun with a thermometer to take the temperature, so how do we find out how hot the sun really is?

According to NASA, we can figure out the temperature of the sun by looking at its color. All hot objects give off light, and the hotter they are, the closer they are to the blue end of the color spectrum. The sun has a yellow-orange-red color. Scientists have used this to determine that the temperature of the sun is about 5,780 degrees above absolute zero. That's pretty hot!

How can a dog be hypo-allergenic?

This is a question that I think many people have asked recently. Let's start at the beginning.First we discover that hypoallergenic means to have less possibility to cause a reaction. So, now we need to know what is it about a dog that can give a person an allergic reaction. One allergen (the substance that causes an allergic reaction) in dogs is a specific protein found in the dog's drool, or saliva, and is also found in dander. So, when a dog licks someone who is allergic, or even when the dog's hair touches them, it causes them to have a reaction. This can mean sneezing, runny nose and eyes, itchy throat, and more.

Now to the question-how can a dog be hypoallergenic? Some dog breeders believe they can make a dog which has less of the protein allergen. The problem is that it is impossible to completly eliminate the protein from a dog, so no dog will ever truly be hypoallergenic. If you are allergic to dogs, but still want to have one as a pet, the best you can do is get a small dog with little or no hair. This will cut down on the amount of hair the dog can leave, and also on the amount of saliva from licking.

Are humans really animals?

This is a great question-and the answer is YES! Many of us don't realize that humans belong to the animal kingdom. "Human" is the common name for Homo sapiens meaning "wise" or "knowing". Homo is the genus, sapiens is the species. All humans belong to the same species, no matter where they are from, what they look like, or what language they speak. Humans are in the class Mammalia, so share this name with all the mammals in the world. We are in the order Primates, so share many characteristics with other primates like monkeys, apes, and lemurs.

To sum it all up, although humans are the most advanced of all the animals on Earth, we share many common traits with our fellow members of the animal kingdom. 

Is the moon moving at night?  

Wow, did we have fun discussing the answer to this question! The answer is YES! Not only does the moon move at night, it is moving all the time. As the Earth moves around the sun, the moon is moving around the Earth-once every 29.5 days. While it is doing this, the moon is also rotating on an axis (picture a ball speared with a stick through the middle, and spinning the stick), which also takes 29.5 days for a single rotation. It is the combination of these two factors that allow us to see the same side of the moon each night, and also allows for the moon phases.

Thanks for the great questions--keep them coming!!