Seymour Simon's Blog, page 57

Talking about Dangerous Animals

I had a great "double Skype" session today with third and fourth graders in two schools in Durham and Middlefield, Connecticut. They have been studying my books and skyping with each other, and today all three of us did a Skype session together. The students were very well-prepared with questions about my books. They particularly love the very close up photographs in books like ANIMALS NOBODY LOVES, and wondered: how does the cameraperson get so close to a dangerous animal without getting hurt? This is a very good question, and one that I am asked quite often. For a shot like this one, of a rattlesnake's mouth and fangs, the photographer uses a bit of trickery called a "telephoto lens." That lens takes a picture that seems as though you are very, very close, when in fact, you are safely far away. Nobody is going to get THAT close to a poisonous snake! Thanks to Mrs. Kohs and everyone who helped to organize today's Skype session. I really enjoyed talking with you all! Photograph by Anup Shah/Dembinsky Photo Associates.

Earth Day is Around the Corner

Earth Day is one week from today, Friday, April 22. The theme this year is "A Billion Acts of Green" - designed to prove that if we all take action in our daily lives, real change can occur. Starting this Sunday, we are going to have an entire week of coverage of Earth Week. We will tell you about what we are doing here at Seymour Science to contribute our own "acts of green".....and we are going to ask you to tell us what you are doing in your own homes, schools and communities.Churchville Sixth Graders - maybe you could write and tell us about how you used the carbon footprint calculator, and what some of your "Earth Pledges" were? Earth, Our Planet in Space, is our home. Please join us this year in showing how much we care about it.

HORSES!

What animal can . . .run so fast, its feet don't always touch the ground?weigh more than 2,000 pounds?sense people's emotions by their smell?. . .andwear shoes? A horse, of course! Horses are some of the most fascinating - and historically important - creatures on Earth.Are you, or your class, interested in horses? We received this letter last week from a teacher: "Your books are awesome and so engaging for elementary school, middle, and high school students. I am a 4th grade English Language Arts Teacher and I plan to get your book,HORSES,to use as part of a unit. Does your book discuss the impact ofhorseson Native Americans for hunting buffalo?"Our answer was "yes," Seymour Simon's bookHORSESincludes the role ofhorsesin American history, including their role in making Native Americans "the mounted buffalo hunters and warriors of the Great Plains." Then we realized that we had never uploaded thefree Teacher Guidewhich you can download from Seymour's website and use withHORSES. We have added it now now, and it is quite extensive, with Questions for Before and After Reading, Activities, Additional Resources, and a Student Activity page. If you haven't yet tried one of Seymour Simon's Teacher Guides (which are suited for either classroom or home use), try this one today! All photographs from Seymour Simon's HORSES (HarperCollins, 2006)

It's Our Birthday!

Did you know that Seymour Simon launched this website exactly one year ago? And, to make our birthday even better, we won a big award! SeymourSimon.com has been selected as anOfficial Honoreefor the Personal Blog/Websitecategory in The 15thAnnual Webby Awards!Only seven websites were selected in our category, and we are the only one designed for both kids and adults to use and enjoy.The Webbys are like the Academy Awards of the Internet - they recognize the best websites from all over the world. The truth is, a website is only as good as its readers. When you send us your ideas, upload photos and videos, and comment on the blog, you help us to understand what you enjoy, and what you want to see more of. So thank you, to all our loyal SeymourSimon.com readers. We share this honor with all of you!

If you can't have a horse…

Today's "Cool Photo of the Week" features 15-year-old Regina Mayer, who lives in Germany and wanted a horse in the worst way. Unfortunately, her parents didn't agree. So, Regina did the next best thing. When this cow, named Luna, was born on her family's farm, Regina decided to train her. She put a halter on the calf and started taking her for long walks in the woods. Then, she tried walking her with a saddle on, and finally, she sat in the saddle. Now, she not only rides Luna, but she has taught the cow how to jump! Photo: Kerstin Joensson / AP

500 Cutest Animals

The Live Science blog has done a wonderful article, a list of the 500 Cutest Animals. The author, Tom Chao, wrote: "When it comes to looks, the animal kingdom has some cuties (and some not-so cuties). So the TechMediaNetwork editorial team decided to take on the challenge of ranking them, after extensive debate, in reverse order of cuteness." We think that Seymour Science readers will love this post. It is full of great photographs, like this one of a Red Panda, also known as a "firefox." Knowing our readers, I have a feeling you all will want to debate this, as well. Which ones do you think are the cutest?Photo: Julie Larsen Maher/Wildlife Conservation Society

Meet my "Pet"

This is our Chipmunk.He lives in the screened-in porch on the ground floor of our house. He getsin and out through a tear in the screen.Cute, isn't he?I haven't named him. Do you have any ideas?

Cool Photo of the Week: Spiderman?!

This insect-eating lizard is a Mwanza Flat-headed Rock Agama(Agama mwanzae), a common species found in Southern Africa. They live inside the thatch of huts and other small spaces, coming out during the day to soak up the sun on warm rocks and to eat. If they are caught out in the open, agamas stand up on their hind legs and run quickly to a safe place. Some people look at the male's strong colors - head, neck and shoulders are bright red or violet, and the body dark blue - and say it should be called the "Spiderman Lizard." What do you think? Photo: Christian Mehlführer

New Joke Friday and NEW JOKE BOOK!

As our regular readers know, there is a new SCIENCE JOKE or RIDDLE every Friday on the homepage of SeymourSimon.com. This week's joke: Did you hear about the dog that could do multiplication? Click here to see the rest of the joke. And since it's New Joke Friday, we thought we'd let you in on some exciting news.Seymour Simon and his very funny illustration partner, Dennis Kendrick, are almost finished with a new eBook! Readers who are fans of the SILLY DINOSAUR RIDDLES book will want to be on the lookout for this one. It is more of your favorite animals jokes and riddles, this time about animals that you might find in a zoo. You will be able to buy this exciting new book, and lots of other exclusive Seymour Simon eBooks when you download Seymour Simon's free mobile appfor your iPhone, iPod Touch or Android device. And, there will be a new, enhanced version just for the iPad in the coming weeks.SILLY ZOO ANIMAL JOKES AND RIDDLES should be available by the end of April.

Interview with the Famous BRONX ZOO COBRA!

The news this week has been full of stories about the young Egyptian cobra who escaped from her cage in New York's Bronx Zoo. She even had her own Twitter feed with over 200,000 followers. I must say, that's a bit annoying - how do I get that many Twitter followers? The missing cobra was found yesterday, safely curled up in a corner of the Reptile House. How did I become the first person to interview the country's most famous reptile? I didn't. APRIL FOOL!