Saturday, October 31, 2009

Clue Sheet for Special Halloween Edition

Here is the Clues Sheet from today's Halloween edition of Hometown Discoveries.

HD Halloween Clues

Sunday, October 4, 2009

October 2009 Results

Congratulations are in order for Natnael and Michael for taking home the first win of the 2009-2010 school year. Keep it up!

1st Place










This month's funniest photo goes to Jose, Marck and Carron. They will compete next month for free!











1st Place

Natnael & Michael 1075 points

2nd Place
Avril, Ashley & Carolyn 1075 points

3rd Place
Jose,Marck & Carron 975 points

4th Place
Curtis & Cameron 920 Points

5th Place
Eugene & Marques 875 Points

6th Place
Amira, Katoya & Nakia 860 points

7th Place
Emani & Emmanuel 650 Points

8th Place
Malik & Chris 550 Points

9th Place
Asha, Ariel & William 550 Points

Here is what we learned!

October 2009 Answers

Clue #1 Look up in the sky!
Maybe this “New Cat” won’t be so high in the sky but along the Asian Trail it definitely can help make for an overcast day.

Find the Neofelis nebulosa to get the picture.
If Neofelis means “New Cat” what does nebulosa mean?

Sign your answer in front of this “New Cat”
A) Furry
B) Rain
C) Clouded
Remember that your whole team needs to be in front of this animal signing the answer.








Clue #2 Who gives a hoot?

Who is a cinicularia?
Who is Athena’s pet?
Who lives in the Bird House and fits this description?
Who, Who, Who could it be?

Sign your answer in front of the animal that fits the description above.
D) Owl
E) Toucan
F) Kiwi
Remember that your whole team needs to be in front of this animal signing the answer.







Clue #3 Hanging Around

Head to the Small Mammal House to find the prehensilis animal that has spikes or quills as a defense. It also can hang out with its tail. Did you know that a prehensile tale means that the animal can grab things with the tail? But this only happens on one continent of the world.
Which continent would you find animals with prehensile tails?
G) Australia
H) Africa
i) South America
Remember that your whole team needs to be in front of this animal signing the answer.








Clue #4 No Leather Here

There are lots of animals in the Reptile Discovery Center that can be used for leather but why not the Paleoschus palpebrosus?

It is an Osteoderm. This word is made up of Osteo which is Greek for Bone and derm which is Greek for Skin.

So why would people avoid making leather out of an osteoderm?

Find the reason and shoot a short video in which one of you acts like an investigative reporter explaining why there are no belts or shoes made of the Paleoschus palpebrosus.

Make sure you show the animal and record you touching the Osteoderm skin.


Clue #5 Skeletal Remains

Head to the Invertebrate area to find a model of a human with an exoskeleton –How is that possible?
Humans don’t have exoskeletons!

Or can they?

This model is in the right place but make sure that you are pointing to the right model with the exoskeleton.

So what does exo- mean?
J) Under
K) Inner
L) Outer

Remember that your whole team needs to be pointing to the right model and signing the answer.







Clue # 6 Great Primates

Scientific names are developed to be specific and the names are usually in Greek or Latin. Sometimes the scientific name is the same name we call the animal but usually it isn’t.

For example, we are usually called Humans but our scientific name is Homo sapiens…but the great Bison of the west have an interesting scientific name, it is Bison bison. So Howard University’s mascot has a scientific name that we can understand.

So here is the challenge…find the GREAT PRIMATE that has a scientific name we can easily understand 3 times!

Remember that your whole team needs to be in front of this animal in the photo.








Clue #7 Time to Think

Head to the Think Tank to find out how Scientists are trying to find out how animals think. They are researching brains of all sizes…but sometimes the relative brain size may surprise you. Does the size of the Balaenoptera physalus surprise you?

Well first you have to know that this scientific name is part of the Balene family. If you knew your Latin or ancient Greek you would already know what type of animal you’re looking for.

Do you think the Balaenoptera physalus brain should be…. larger or smaller? (Circle one)

What types of animals are in the Balene family?
M) Elephants
N) Bats
O) Tigers
P) Whales

Remember that your whole team needs to be in front of this brain and signing the answer.







Clue # 8 A Day on the Farm

Head to the Kid’s Farm and find an animal that fits into the Equus family. The Equus family can be mixed up with many different types of animals that are similar. Since the family can have a mixture of different animals…you must unscramble the animal’s name.

Unscramble this name: HLSAF
Now figure out which types of animals the Equus family is most like:
Q) Rabbits
R) Horses
S) Cows
Get a picture of your team signing the answer in front of this animal.










BONUS: 45 extra points if you are actually petting this animal.







Clue #9 Between Two Worlds

Head to Amazonia and find the animal in the Science Gallery that fits this description:

Looks like a worm but it has a backbone
Looks like an eel but it’s not a fish.
It lives in water but can breathe on land.
In Greek it would be part of the class of animals that
are "living two lives."

What is the Greek word that means to “Live two lives” and is the type of animal that this one is?
T) Amphibians
U) Reptiles
V) Mammals
Remember that your whole team needs to be in front of this animal signing the answer in the photo.









Clue #10 Join the Pack
On the Valley Trail you’ll find a howler who looks after her pups and shares a tooth with you! Did you know that you have a canine tooth? How did you get that you are not in the Canis family?
What animals make up the Canis family?
W) Beavers & Otters
X) Seals & Sea Lions
Y) Wolves & Dogs
Remember that your whole team needs to be in front of this animal signing the answer in the photo.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Scavenger Hunt Sheet for October 2009

Here is the handout from today's Hometown Discoveries Competition. The answers will be posted tomorrow.
Oct 309 Clues