Seymour Simon's Blog, page 69

Invasion of the Bedbugs! by guest blogger Jordan D. Brown When I was a boy, I loved when my mom tucked me in at night, and sent me off to dreamland with these sweet words: “Sleep tight. Don’t let the bedbugs bite!” Today, many children and adults find this cute rhyming advice more terrifying than reassuring. After all, bedbugs are real bloodthirsty critters—and these tiny guys have been coming out in HUGE numbers. Much to the joy of New York City tabloids and exterminator companies, bedbug infestations have been found at many high-profile businesses and landmarks including Niketown, Abercrombie and Fitch, Victoria’s Secret, the Metropolitan Opera House, the offices of Howard Stern, not to mention numerous movie theater, housing projects, posh apartments and more. And this is not just a NYC phenomenon; bedbugs are reproducing in epidemic proportions across the country. Once bedbugs settle in, removing them can be costly, time-consuming, and tricky. Oh, and did I mention that bedbugs can live for a year without eating? (I’m cranky if I miss breakfast.) What exactly are bedbugs? Why are they spreading in such alarming numbers? Is there anything you can do to protect yourselves from these creatures? Last year I wrote a children’s science book MICRO MANIA to explore such gross and engrossing questions. The subtitle of the book even mentions these sneaky, itty-bitty insects— “A Really Close-Up Look at Bacteria, Bedbugs, and the Zillions of Other Gross Little Creatures That Live In, On, and All Around You!” First, what are bedbugs? They are flat, reddish-brown wingless insects, about the size of a grain of rice. During the day, they hide in the walls, in tiny cracks, behind electrical outlets, underneath wallpaper, behind picture frames, and more. As their name suggests, they are also fond of beds. That’s because at night, they slip out through the cracks and come to feast on blood…your blood. Bedbugs find us in the dark by sensing the carbon dioxide gas we breathe out. Once they locate a sleeping human, they stick their mouthparts into our skin and suck away. Bedbugs are hearty eaters. In less than fifteen minutes of blood-sucking, their bodies can triple in size. The bite left by a bedbug might look like a small red dot and feel itchy. If you think you’ve been bitten by bedbugs, try not to panic, and don’t scratch. Just wash the area with soap and water, and try some anti-itch cream. On the plus side (“You mean there actually IS a plus side?!”), bedbugs are not believed to carry or transmit diseases. Why are bedbugs on the rise? I posed this question to the spokesperson of the bedbug community, Alfonzo Z. Bloodsucker, Esq. (a big fan of my book, by the way). Speaking on behalf of his species, he responded, “Why are there so darn many of us these days? Well, a lot has to do with increased global travel. Years ago, people tended to stay put more. Now, it’s quite easy as a bedbug to ‘see the world’—you just have to hitch a ride on the pants of a globe-trotting businessperson, or the suitcase of an international celebrity.” Mr. Bloodsucker also explained that once very powerful pesticides like DDT were banned in 1972, bedbugs were able to reproduce more freely. So, what can you do if you think you might have a bedbug problem? According to the NYC Department of Health (whose free helpful PDF booklet is available here), you will need to contact a professional exterminator. Some companies use specially trained dogs to sniff out the bedbugs and then they spray with powerful chemicals to kill off burgeoning bedbug population. And remember, just getting rid of the bugs isn’t enough. It’s important to get rid of all their eggs, too. Bedbugs hide their tiny eggs in blankets, soft furniture, and even inside favorite stuffed animals…..which unfortunately need to be disposed of to eliminate the eggs. Mr. Bloodsucker suggested that I end this post on a lighter note. Q: Did you hear about the bedbug expert who got amnesia? A: He had to start from scratch!

As I continue to edit and update myScience Dictionary, I'm loving the fact that it is a living, online document which I can improve and expand as kids are exposed to new scientific ideas, language, and breakthroughs.The fact that I can add images makes it even more fun!If your kids (or students) haven't yet discovered my online Science Dictionary, check it out with them today. It's there as a resource for them to use with their homework, as well as to entice them to browse, enjoy and learn.

Tornadoes were reported yesterday in Tennessee and Alabama, and a particularly destructive tornado struck Rice, Texas at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, destroying homes, turning over vehicles and knocking a railroad car right off the tracks, according to Navarro County Chief Deputy Mike Cox. Fortunately the only injuries were relatively minor, but also caused extensive damage to Rice Elementary School, which means it struck very close to home for local kids. Children who live in "Tornado Alley" (from Texas north to Nebraska) can learn what to do to protect themselves and their families. I'm going to reiterate some of what I've written previously on this subject, as well as answer some questions that kids are likely to ask. Giving elementary-age (and older) children information is the best way to offer reassurance and reduce anxiety. Why is this happening when it's not "tornado season" (usually defined as April through July, with May and June being the peak months)? Like thunderstorms, tornadoes can form any time of the year. What is a tornado and why does it cause such destruction? A tornado's funnel looks like a huge elephant's trunk hanging down from a cloud. The funnel acts like a giant vacuum cleaner…whenever the "hose" touches the ground, it sucks things up into the air. Usually, tornadoes are local storms. A typical tornado is only 400 to 500 feet wide, has winds of less than 112 miles per hour, and last only a few minutes. But sometimes, monster tornadoes a mile wide with winds up to 500 miles per hour are born in very large thunderstorms - also called supercells - and they can cause tremendous destruction. Tornadoes have moved houses down a whole block, bounced 20-ton tractor-trailers up and down on the highway, even picked up a pond full of frogs and rained them down on a nearby town! If you live near an area that is prone to tornadoes at this time of year, the most important things to remember are: * Pay attention to early warning sirens and alerts on radio and television, so that you can take shelter before a tornado strikes. * Cars and mobile homes are NOT safe during a tornado. Go to the basement of a solidly built house. * If you are in an apartment or home without a basement, getting into a bathtub and covering yourself with a couch cushion or a mattress protects you on all sides. * If you are out walking or biking, life flat in a ditch if there is no rain. If there is rain, there may be a danger of flash flooding, so stay out of the ditch, get away from trees and power lines, crouch down and make yourself as small as possible - be a "human basketball"! You don't have to worry too much in advance about tornadoes, but finding out when they are coming and knowing what to do is certain to help you if one strikes.

People often ask me how I choose the subjects for my books. Titles come about in all sorts of ways. Sometimes it is simply a topic that I am very passionate about (hence all my books about Space and exploring our universe - this has been a fascination for me since I was a little kid). At other times, my editor and I decide what is needed to "fill out" an existing series. For example, my recent Collins/Smithsonian books have been dealing with environmental topics like Global Warming and Tropical Rainforests, and now I'm just beginning research on a third topic for that environmental strand, about Coral Reefs.Often, I will decide to do a book simply because it is on a topic that I know kids will love. I've just finished up a new book with my good friend, the illustrator Dennis Kendrick. It's called Silly Dinosaur Riddles, and it hits two enduring hot spots for elementary-aged kids—they love dinosaurs, and they love to tell jokes and riddles! So, deciding on that topic was easy, and we're delighted with the way that it came out. It's also going to be my first original eBook - designed to read on a smartphone, an iPad, or any other tablet reader. More and more schools and libraries are buying these devices to use with kids, and I'm excited to be creating books that children can read on one of these new readers.Back in 2002, I wrote two books that I knew my young grandsons would love—Seymour Simon's Book of Trucks, and Seymour Simon's Book of Trains. One of the very nice things about writing for children is that books have long lives. Every three or four years, you get a new crop of kids who grow into the topic or reading level, and fall in love with your book all over again.That happened this week with my Book of Trains, when I discovered this lovely review by Frances Loving, a librarian who writes a thoughtful blog called Quiet Ramblings. The book may be almost ten years old, but it's clearly still relevant for her students! Click here to read her review.I always like to hear from readers, parents and teachers. If there is a topic that you'd like to see me cover, drop me a note here and let me know!

I am wearing my favorite shirt today - a drawing of planet Earth with a "Saving" status bar below, registering about 30%. Saving Earth is something I find myself thinking about nearly every day…..especially when I read the news and see how many of the predictions of the consequences of global warming are coming to pass. 2010 has been a year of weather extremes - huge snowfalls in places that normally don't get much snow at all, a deadly heat wave this summer in Russia leading to fires that killed 700 people per day, and unprecedented flooding in Pakistan that has affected 21 million people (1-out-of-8 Pakistanis), leaving at least 6 million people homeless and an area the size of Italy underwater. Scientists say that the devastating floods in Pakistan and Russia's heatwave were both the kind of extremes caused by global warming. We don't know enough to blame manmade pollution and the greenhouse effect for directly causing any single, specific weather disaster, but we are certainly seeing an escalating pattern of climate extremes that are most likely part of a change in Earth's climate, caused by global warming. How is it that we get both extreme drought and extreme precipitation, even huge amounts of snow, when temperatures are increasing? The reasons that droughts are getting worse is pretty obvious for areas that generally have little rainfall - when the temperature gets hotter, drought conditions get even worse. But extreme rain and snow? Well, there is a physical law (it's called the Clausius-Clapeyron relation, for those of you who want to look it up!) which established that the water-holding capacity of the atmosphere increases by about 7% for every 1°C rise in temperature.Because precipitation comes mainly from weather systems that feed on the water vapor stored in the atmosphere, this has generally increased precipitation intensity and the risk of heavy rain and snow events. 2010 has also been a very bad year for our planet's coral reefs. Mark Eakin, coordinator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coral Reef Watch, said high ocean temperatures in 2010 are causing corals to whiten, or bleach. "Major bleaching started in the Central Pacific in the early part of this year, then there was bleaching in the Indian Ocean and especially Southeast Asia throughout May and June. And now the big concern is that we may be seeing the worst bleaching ever in the Caribbean, later this year." According to NOAA, this thermal stress to corals is the highest it has been since 1998, when 15% of the world's coral reefs died. I am about to begin work on a book about coral reefs, which are some of the most biologically diverse and economically valuable ecosystems on earth. Coral reefs are a source of food for millions of people, protect coastlines from storms and erosion; provide habitat for thousands of fish species, and provide many human jobs in both the fishing and tourism industries. In a nutshell, no reefs, no fish. Not good for marine biodiversity, and not good for us humans, either. I know that it is confusing for people when they constantly hear conflicting opinions about the existence of global warming. All I can say is that you have to think about whom you are listening to, and what sources you trust. The evidence and data from respected scientists around the world all around the world tells us that the increase in greenhouse gases is causing Earth's climate to become warmer. This year is on track to be the hottest since we started keeping reliable temperature records in the mid-1800s. The record-setting heat, beating the previous hottest year recorded in 1998, is mainly due to a build-up of greenhouse gases from fossil fuels, according to the U.N. World Meteorological Organization (WMO). "We will always have climate extremes. But it looks like climate change is exacerbating the intensity of the extremes," said Omar Baddour, chief of climate data management applications at WMO headquarters in Geneva. It's all part of what NY Times writer Thomas Friedman has called "global weirding" - the weather gets strange and unpredictable, with the extremes getting more extreme. Great nations like ours will continue to answer the call when disaster strikes, and countries in vulnerable areas will get better at taking preventative measures and responding before potential disasters strike. But, if we look at the havoc created by extreme weather events, then we - all global citizens together - should also be able to see the consequences of our actions and decide to change by taking steps to reduce to reduce carbon emissions. It is probably too late to completely reverse global warming, but we can most definitely slow it down. The evidence is clear, and as an educator I want to teach children to be defenders of our beautiful planet and advocates for healthier, more thoughtful energy choices. While it may be too late to reverse all the effects of years of neglect that began with the industrial revolution, it is most definitely not too late to change our ways and mitigate at least some of that damage. Whether you are a global warming believer, a global warming denier, or someone who's not really sure what to believe, taking better care of Earth makes good sense in any event. It's our home, and it's the only one we have. Chart: Courtesy NOAA Photo: Nick Hobgood

People often ask me if I personally shoot all the photographs in my photo-essay books, sinceboth words and images are so important in telling the story. The answer is that although I use my own photographs whenever I can, often the subject matter demands photographs that can only be had from specialists. For example, books like PENGUINS or the forthcoming BUTTERFLIES include photos by professionals who have literally spent years observing and photographing these animals. Part of what I do when I'm writing a book is photo research - scouring the archives to find photographs that I believe will best illuminate and in many cases expand on the text. Sometimes, if I find a photograph that is interesting enough, I will even rewrite the page to go with the photograph. It is a fluid process, writing and doing photo research, and one that I really enjoy.I do, however, photograph nature and animals often….pretty much every week I find one day when I can get away from my desk and spend time in the outdoors with my camera. We recently visited an alpaca farm in Columbia County, NY, and I found these animals to be irresistibly photogenic. The bangs hanging over their eyes certainly enhance what are already quirky, expressive faces! We often are tempted to assign human emotions to animals…..like thinking that this little guy is looking at me quizzically. The fact of the matter is, when you get close to an alpaca, it often summons up green liquid (from chewing its cud) to spit at you. Spitting is how they stake out their territory, as well as reinforce the pecking order in the herd. Unfortunately, when an alpaca is sucking on partially digested grass, he often gets a bad case of sour mouth. So, although I'd like to tell you a lovely story about how this young cria (pronounced"cree-ah," the Spanish word for baby alpaca, commonly used among English-speaking breeders, too) and I established a wonderful relationship, the truth is he was just letting me know I was getting too close to his territory!

There is a fascinating story in this week's Science News for Kids. Researchers at a number of universities are building nanorobots which they hope eventually will be able to fight disease right inside the human body! The prefix "nano" comes from bothfrom Latin[nānus]and from Greek[nanos], meaning a dwarf, or a little old man. In science, we use nano- to mean something very small; it can also precisely mean one-billionth (a "nanosecond" is one-billionth of a second). Sonow you know why Apple named their smallest iPod the Nano!At any rate, these nanorobots are built from DNA, which of course is the building block of human life, and they travel through the body by hooking onto other DNA 'ladders'. At some point in the future scientists could, for example, program one of these nanorobots to attack a specific cancer cell, but leave all the healthy cells around it alone. Click here to read this very interesting story about nanorobots. Illustration shows a nanorobot crawling along a DNA track. Credit: Nicolle Rager Fuller

Happy World Space Week! In 1999 the United Nations General Assembly decreed that every year from October 4-10 should be the largest annual space event on our Planet Earth! What can you do in your home or your school to celebrate World Space Week? Well, the most important thing is to simply take the time to look at, read about, and celebrate the wonders of our Universe. Years ago, I published a book of poetry called STAR WALK,in which I juxtaposed color photographs of space with poems by a range of authors. (As we all know, poetry doesn’t sell. The book is long out of print, although you may find it in your library). I wrote this in the introduction to the book: As far back as early Native Americans such as the Passamaquoddy, and even before that, people have looked to the stars in wonder and appreciation. They wrote stories and poetry about the fixed stars and the wandering planets, the bright Sun and the changing shapes of the Moon…..the glowing comets and streaking meteors. They also drew pictures of what they had seen and, in more recent times, photographed the amazing sights of space. Take some time and look at the night sky this week. Jupiter remains the brightest “star” in the sky, other than the moon, and is visible to the west every night. If you look through binoculars, you may even see one or more of its moons. Look up at the millions upon millions of stars that make up the Milky Way. To the naked eye, our galaxy looks like a hazy band of light that stretches across the night sky. The longer you look and allow your eyes to adjust to the dark, the more stars you will see. But still, we only see a fraction of the stars that are out there. After all, Alpha Centauri, the closest star to us after the Su,n is 4.3 light-years, or 25-trillion miles, away. Even a spaceship traveling ten miles per second would take more than seventy-thousand years to get to Alpha Centauri! We are part of a vast, fascinating Universe, and with advances like the Hubble Space Telescope and other emerging exploration technologies, we are just at the beginning of a golden age of discovery. I’m going to leave you with the words of one of my heroes, the great scientist and astronomer Sir Isaac Newton. I seem to have been only a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me. Happy World Space Week to all my readers! —- Seymour

NASA has annnounced that a team of planet hunters including scientists from the NASA Astrobiology Institute’s teams has discovered a planet with three times the mass of Earth orbiting a nearby star at a distance that places it squarely in the middle of the star’s “habitable zone,” an area where liquid water could exist on the planet’s surface. If confirmed, this would be the most Earth-like exoplanet yet discovered, and the first strong case for a potentially habitable one. What is a "Goldilocks" planet? A planet that is not too hot, not too cold, but JUST RIGHT for life as we know it to exist. This is the first exoplanet discovered that is just right! This is very exciting news because it means that Goldilocks Planets may be very common in the Milky Way Galaxy. Just think: Science Fiction authors may have been right all along in their stories about life on distant stars.The large planet in the foreground of this artist’s image is the newly discovered GJ 581g. Image Credit: Lynette Cook/NASA

This is something that I have been meaning to post for awhile. When Seymour spoke at the Literacy Conference at San Angelo State University earlier this year, he was introduced by district education specialist Dedra Carter. Dedra had been up very late the night before making this wonderful "animoto" slide show - complete with text and music - to introduce Seymour. It is very touching, and the emotion reflects the way we felt about our week there. Lots of love right back at you, San Angelo!CLICK HERE to view Dedra Carter's animoto video introduction to Seymour Simon's speech.