Answers to Questions Kids Ask! - Where "Why?" Turns to "Wow!"
Born on this day
September 19, 20111931 - Brook Benton
1934 - Brian Epstein
1928 - Pete Murray
1933 - David McCallum
1940 - Zandra Rhodes
1940 - Bill Medley
1945 - Kate Adie
1946 - Michael Elphick
1948 - Jeremy Irons
1949 - Twiggy
1963 - David Seaman
Cows can eat grass, so why can’t we? Well, plant cells contain something called cellulose. Chemically, it’s almost identical to a lot of the carbohydrate molcules (like glucose and fructose) in the food we eat. But cellulose has one bond that’s different, and we can’t break that bond to get the energy out of the cellulose the way we get it from other molecules. So we could eat grass, but we wouldn’t be able to digest it to get the energy we need. Cows and other mammals can eat grass because they have special bacteria living in their stomachs called symbiont bacteria. These symbionts can break the bond in cellulose for the animal its living in. That way cows can get energy from grass. We don’t have any of these symbiont bacteria, so we can’t digest the cellulose in grass.
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What do Frogs eat?
Frogs are carnivores, which means they eat other animals. Mostly they eat insects and other invertebrates. But big frogs may eat other vertebrates as well–fish, small birds and reptiles, other…
Why do we need to breathe air to live?
The simple answer to this question is that we need oxygen. But I have a feeling you are looking for a more complex explanation. So here goes: All the processes…
Why do I get sleepy after Thanksgiving dinner?
Sometimes people blame that after-dinner drowsiness on the turkey. Turkey meat contains an amino acid called L-tryptophan, and this compound helps makes you sleepy. But you’d have to eat turkey…
What are fingernails and toenails made of?
Fingernails and toenails, hair, skin, animal fur, animal claws and hooves, and even animal feathers are largely made up of the very same chemical protein called keratin. It’s nature’s own…
Does gum really take 7 years to digest in your stomach?
Nope, that’s just a myth. In fact, our stomach doesn’t digest gum at all! Since it’s made out of soluble fiber, chewing gum passes right through us. So gum comes…