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through these amazing science facts!
Mapping the Earth
The First Maps
The oldest recorded maps ever discovered come from ancient Babylonia
around 2500 B.C. Made of baked clay, they appear to be the first
official road maps that also show locations of fields, rivers, and
villages.
Where in the World?
When the United States military set up the Global Positioning System
(GPS), a satellite navigation system, it cost more than $12 billion.
The highly accurate system can pinpoint a person anywhere on Earth's
surface within 60 feet (20 m). At that rate, it's almost impossible
to get lost. Not only can the GPS tell you your location, but it
can also tell you the time within about 200 nanoseconds.
That's a Lot of Green
Developed by the Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569,
Mercator projection maps keep lines of longitude parallel as they
move north and south. This is extremely helpful for navigators who
must take regular directional readings at sea. As a result, however,
this projection distorts the Poles so much that Greenland looks
almost five times greater than it really is.
What a Relief!
The ancient Chinese were the first people to develop physical relief
maps. These maps, produced sometime in the 3rd century B.C., showed
changes in elevation and were often carved from wood or made from
molded rice.
Rocks & Minerals
Giant Gems
The biggest diamond ever found was the Cullinan Diamond weighing
in at a whopping 3,106 carats. That's more than a pound. That's
nothing compared to the largest ruby — which is over 8,500
carats. But the real monster is an 86,136 carat emerald found in
Brazil in 1972. It's almost 40 pounds of gemstone.
Cave Facts
The world's deepest cave goes down 5,256 feet (1,602 meters) and
is located in Haute Savoie, France.
Mammouth Cave in Kentucky is the world's longest cave system, traveling
for over 340 miles.
Carbon Copy?
Diamonds and graphite (the lead in pencils) are both composed of
one element, carbon. However, the atomic pattern of the two is different.
What a difference that makes! Cut diamonds are clear and the hardest
substance on Earth. Graphite is dark and soft.
History of the Earth
Changing Earth
Given time, Earth will look quite different from the way it looks
now.
The continent of Australia has turned completely around due to plate
tectonic action during the last 200 million years. If it continues
on its present course, Australia will eventually hit the southern
border of Asia. The small country of Iceland is actually growing
by about 2.5 cm every year. It's located right on the mid-Atlantic
ridge, which is an active spreading center. As new magma wells up
from beneath the surface, it not only pushes the two sides of the
Atlantic Ocean further apart, but it adds new land to Iceland.
Ice Age Wonders?
Ice ages aren't just a thing of the past!
During the last glacial period, about 25,000 years ago, so much
of the world's water was locked up in glaciers that sea level dropped
over 100 meters (300 feet). At that point, Asia and North America
were connected by a land bridge across what is now the Bering Strait.
Ice Age Wonders II
Glaciers currently cover 10 percent of the earth. At the peak of
the last ice age, this figure was closer to 30 percent!
The thickest part of the Antarctic ice sheet is over 16,400 feet.
That's over three miles of ice!
Salt of the Earth?
The Great Salt Lake in Utah is the remains of a much larger lake
that formed over 1 million years ago during the ice age. Known as
Lake Bonneville, it covered almost 20,000 square miles in Utah,
Idaho, and Nevada. When the glaciers finally retreated, the water
from Lake Bonneville flowed out to the Pacific Ocean via the Snake
and the Columbia rivers. As the climate became drier, the lake continued
to evaporate. This concentrated the minerals and created the present-day
Great Salt Lake and Bonneville Salt Flats.
Structures
What a Cut-up!
Egyptian stonecutters didn't have steel or iron tools. The only
metal they had was bronze, which was too soft to quarry limestone
blocks. So they used chisels made from dolerite, a hard rock that
cut grooves in the limestone. They soaked wooden wedges with water
and inserted them into the grooves. The wedges swelled and split
the stone. After repeated soakings, the block cracked in two. The
stonecutters smoothed the stone by rubbing it with granite.
Volcanoes
An Ancient Volcanologist
The first recorded account of a volcanic eruption was recorded in
the A.D. 79 eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. Pliny the Younger, age 17,
observed the eruption that took the life of his uncle, Pliny the
Elder, and powerfully described the event in letters he wrote to
a friend. This detailed report described the earth's tremors, the
large amounts of ash and pumice, tidal waves, and the sky's darkness.
Eruptions similar to the eruption of Vesuvius are now called "Plinian"
eruptions.
Sometimes Crime Does Pay
In May of 1902, Mount Pelee, located on the island of Martinique,
suddenly came to life when masses of white-hot lava and pumice stone
burst from the southern wall of the mountain. The lava engulfed
plantations on its slopes and the town of Saint-Pierre at its base.
Ships in the bay were capsized in boiling water, and within seven
hours, almost 30,000 persons were dead. The sole survivor of this
disaster was a prisoner named Auguste Ciparis, who had been held
in a deep dungeon while the earth above him raged.
Insects
Malaria and Human Resistance
The most serious disease spread by insects is malaria. Carried in
their salivary glands, malaria has been around for thousands of
years and is still a problem in many countries today. In countries
where malaria is common, some people are immune to the disease.
Substances in their blood have adapted to the presence of malaria's
insect-borne parasite.
Land & Water
Nature Knows Best
The Nile, the world's longest river, is responsible for the development
of an early civilization — ancient Egypt. Beginning in equatorial
Africa, the Nile flows north and makes its way to the Mediterranean
Sea. It passes though the middle of Egypt, which would be a barren
and uninhabitable desert without it.
Since ancient times, the river has flooded nearly every year, depositing
nutrient-rich silt along its banks and washing away accumulated
salts. The flooding adds moisture to the soil, making it ideal for
growing crops.
Dig Personnel
Meet the archaeologists, students and volunteers working at the
Muncy Canal site
Dig Diaries
Participate in the exciting discoveries by reading the latest from
the field
Ask an Archaeologist
Visit our FAQs page to get answers to all your questions about the
dig
The Archaeologist's Toolbox
Learn about the tools we use before, during, and after excavations
Archaeology for Kids
Here are a few games and puzzles to help young children and students
learn about archaeology
Upcoming Events
Learn more about us, and get information on visiting the site or
taking part in one of our programs
Media Coverage
Read all about it! Public Radio, local newspapers, Web 'zines and
television newscasts investigate The Muncy Heritage Park and Nature
Trail
Join the Society
Want to help with the Archaeology Dig? Become a member of the Muncy
Historical Society
Muncy Historical Society
Visit the Muncy Historical Society's Web site
Robin
Van Auken, archaeologist for the project
Meet Robin Van Auken and find out more about the field school she
teaches for Lycoming College
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