Fwd: Krampf #491 Building a Nest
[email protected]
I'm forwarding this on because I doubt everyone knows Bob Krampf
exists. He has a website and a weekly experiment that he send out
through yahoogroups (which is where I got this one).
Every Monday, he sends out an email with an experiment to try. Some are
involved. Some are incredibly simple. All are fun (if just to read, if
not actually DO). This one hits home for us because of all the nesting
going on here right now. Out little wren, whose nest in on my back
porch, has woven a small piece of snake skin into it! I usually throw
dog hair and colorful yarn in small clumps---so cool to spot our
contributions in a discovered nest.
~Kelly
Kelly Lovejoy
Conference Coordinator
Live and Learn Unschooling Conference
http://www.LiveandLearnConference.org
-----Original Message-----
From: KRAMPF@...
To: [email protected]
Robert Krampf's Experiment of the Week:
#492 Building a Nest
Home! No matter how wonder-filled a vacation trip is, it is always
great to
get back home. Today, I unloaded the rocks and minerals (mostly
quartz
crystals) that Nancy and I collected. After moving all the boxes, I
estimate the
combined weight to be a bit over 700 pounds. Of course, by the time
we give
specimens to all our friends, decorate the gardens at both the Garden
House
and the Beach House, and fill the curio cabinets, we may have to go
back to
collect more. If you have not seen all the fun we had, check it out
on my blog:
http://www.thehappyscientist.com
*********************
This week's experiment is one that we used for teaching about birds
back when
I worked in the Education Department at the Memphis Pink Palace Museum.
On
our trip, we went by to say Hi to old friends, which brought back tons
of
great memories. This is one of the fun things my brain dredged up.
Look at some bird nests. You can either search your yard ( just look,
don't
touch or bother the nest), visit your local Nature Center, or search
the
Internet. A quick Google Image search for "bird nest" came up with
over 175,000
images of bird nests. Look at the wide variety of nests, from huge
Bald
Eagle nests that can weigh more than a ton, to the marvelous nests that
Hummingbirds build from spider webs. They truly are amazing, but how
hard are they to
build. That is what we will find out.
To try this, you will need:
Tweezers
several marbles
sticks
grass
string
leaves
hair
other things you may find in your yard
OK, the task is simple. Collect your materials from the yard, and
then try
to build a bird nest. You can select from anything in your yard that
a bird
might use. Think about the different nests you have seen, and what
they were
made of. Sounds like an easy project, right? Oh, one more thing.
You
have to collect the materials and build the nest using the tweezers.
Birds
don't have hands, and most of them make very little use of their feet
in nest
building. For most birds, their single tool is their beak. You
don't have a
beak, so you get to use the tweezers instead.
Your goal is to make a nest that would sit in a tree or a bush, and
that
would hold several bird eggs, or in our case, glass marbles. Trees
and bushes
are exposed to the wind, so the nest has to be sturdy enough so that it
will
hold the marbles, even when you shake the nest to simulate wind blowing
the bush.
You are limited to materials a bird would use. That rules out
wrapping
your nest in Duct tape or using glue to hold it together. Some birds
do use
their sticky saliva as a glue to hold the nest in place. In fact,
nests made
from the saliva of certain cave swifts are used to make Birds Nest
Soup, a
Chinese delicacy. Yum! I love Birds Nest Soup, even though I know
it is made
of bird spit. Feel free to use spit on your nest, if you think that
will
help.
When you are done with your nest, test it with the marbles and some
gentle
shaking. If it holds together, congratulations! Take a photo and
email it to
me. I will post the nests on my blog
(http://www.thehappyscientist.com).
Be sure to send your name, age, and what materials you used, to post
with your
nest photo.
When you are done, look back over the photos of the bird nests. You
should
then have a true appreciation of the skill these amazing creatures
have, to
build such elaborate structures with just their beak. Imagine trading
in your
hands for a beak. Just imagine how much work it would be to eat an
entire
bowl of ice cream with just a beak! Now that is something worth
experimenting
with!
Have a wonder-filled week!
Robert Krampf
Robert Krampf's Science Education Company
www.krampf.com
The Happy Scientist Blog
http://web.mac.com/krampf/iWeb/Site/TheHappyScientist/TheHappyScientist.html
****************************************
This weekly e-mail list is provided free of charge. You are welcome
to forwa
rd it
to friends, print it in your newsletter, repost it on the Internet,
etc., as
long as you do not charge for them, and my name and e-mail address are
included.
Please forward this e-mail to anyone that you think might enjoy it.
You can join this list through either Yahoo Groups or Topica, depending
on
which service you prefer.
To join the list on Yahoo Groups, send a blank e-mail to:
[email protected]
To join the list on Topica, send a blank e-mail to:
krampf-subscribe@...
on-line archives are located at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/krampf/messages
http://www.topica.com/lists/krampf/read
________________________________________________________________________
AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's free
from AOL at AOL.com.
=0
exists. He has a website and a weekly experiment that he send out
through yahoogroups (which is where I got this one).
Every Monday, he sends out an email with an experiment to try. Some are
involved. Some are incredibly simple. All are fun (if just to read, if
not actually DO). This one hits home for us because of all the nesting
going on here right now. Out little wren, whose nest in on my back
porch, has woven a small piece of snake skin into it! I usually throw
dog hair and colorful yarn in small clumps---so cool to spot our
contributions in a discovered nest.
~Kelly
Kelly Lovejoy
Conference Coordinator
Live and Learn Unschooling Conference
http://www.LiveandLearnConference.org
-----Original Message-----
From: KRAMPF@...
To: [email protected]
Robert Krampf's Experiment of the Week:
#492 Building a Nest
Home! No matter how wonder-filled a vacation trip is, it is always
great to
get back home. Today, I unloaded the rocks and minerals (mostly
quartz
crystals) that Nancy and I collected. After moving all the boxes, I
estimate the
combined weight to be a bit over 700 pounds. Of course, by the time
we give
specimens to all our friends, decorate the gardens at both the Garden
House
and the Beach House, and fill the curio cabinets, we may have to go
back to
collect more. If you have not seen all the fun we had, check it out
on my blog:
http://www.thehappyscientist.com
*********************
This week's experiment is one that we used for teaching about birds
back when
I worked in the Education Department at the Memphis Pink Palace Museum.
On
our trip, we went by to say Hi to old friends, which brought back tons
of
great memories. This is one of the fun things my brain dredged up.
Look at some bird nests. You can either search your yard ( just look,
don't
touch or bother the nest), visit your local Nature Center, or search
the
Internet. A quick Google Image search for "bird nest" came up with
over 175,000
images of bird nests. Look at the wide variety of nests, from huge
Bald
Eagle nests that can weigh more than a ton, to the marvelous nests that
Hummingbirds build from spider webs. They truly are amazing, but how
hard are they to
build. That is what we will find out.
To try this, you will need:
Tweezers
several marbles
sticks
grass
string
leaves
hair
other things you may find in your yard
OK, the task is simple. Collect your materials from the yard, and
then try
to build a bird nest. You can select from anything in your yard that
a bird
might use. Think about the different nests you have seen, and what
they were
made of. Sounds like an easy project, right? Oh, one more thing.
You
have to collect the materials and build the nest using the tweezers.
Birds
don't have hands, and most of them make very little use of their feet
in nest
building. For most birds, their single tool is their beak. You
don't have a
beak, so you get to use the tweezers instead.
Your goal is to make a nest that would sit in a tree or a bush, and
that
would hold several bird eggs, or in our case, glass marbles. Trees
and bushes
are exposed to the wind, so the nest has to be sturdy enough so that it
will
hold the marbles, even when you shake the nest to simulate wind blowing
the bush.
You are limited to materials a bird would use. That rules out
wrapping
your nest in Duct tape or using glue to hold it together. Some birds
do use
their sticky saliva as a glue to hold the nest in place. In fact,
nests made
from the saliva of certain cave swifts are used to make Birds Nest
Soup, a
Chinese delicacy. Yum! I love Birds Nest Soup, even though I know
it is made
of bird spit. Feel free to use spit on your nest, if you think that
will
help.
When you are done with your nest, test it with the marbles and some
gentle
shaking. If it holds together, congratulations! Take a photo and
email it to
me. I will post the nests on my blog
(http://www.thehappyscientist.com).
Be sure to send your name, age, and what materials you used, to post
with your
nest photo.
When you are done, look back over the photos of the bird nests. You
should
then have a true appreciation of the skill these amazing creatures
have, to
build such elaborate structures with just their beak. Imagine trading
in your
hands for a beak. Just imagine how much work it would be to eat an
entire
bowl of ice cream with just a beak! Now that is something worth
experimenting
with!
Have a wonder-filled week!
Robert Krampf
Robert Krampf's Science Education Company
www.krampf.com
The Happy Scientist Blog
http://web.mac.com/krampf/iWeb/Site/TheHappyScientist/TheHappyScientist.html
****************************************
This weekly e-mail list is provided free of charge. You are welcome
to forwa
rd it
to friends, print it in your newsletter, repost it on the Internet,
etc., as
long as you do not charge for them, and my name and e-mail address are
included.
Please forward this e-mail to anyone that you think might enjoy it.
You can join this list through either Yahoo Groups or Topica, depending
on
which service you prefer.
To join the list on Yahoo Groups, send a blank e-mail to:
[email protected]
To join the list on Topica, send a blank e-mail to:
krampf-subscribe@...
on-line archives are located at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/krampf/messages
http://www.topica.com/lists/krampf/read
________________________________________________________________________
AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's free
from AOL at AOL.com.
=0