by Marc Aronson
WORLD’S GREATEST DAREDEVILS
NIAGARA FALLS TIGHTROPE WALKERS—THE GREAT FARINI AND BLONDIN
Although not the biggest falls in the world, Niagara is one of the widest falls, with more than six million cubic feet of water spilling over its 173-foot height every second. The Great Farini (William Hunt) and Charles Blondin were tightrope walkers in the 1850s who competed to see who could do the most outrageous stunt over Niagara Falls. Their wires were suspended 160 feet over the falls, and they performed feats that have never been attempted again. Both pushed wheelbarrows across the wire at this height; that was considered an easy stunt. Blondin carried one of his friends out on his back, and once carried a small stove and cooked himself a breakfast omelet on the wire. Farini washed his clothes on the wire by pulling water up from the falls in a bucket, and even lowered himself down to a passing ship, then climbed back up again.
THE SOLO SAILOR—SIR FRANCIS CHICESTER
This 65-year-old British sailor went all the way around the world in his boat in just nine months and one day. He lived on his 54-foot sailing yacht all alone during 1966 and 1967 stopped only once (in Sydney, Australia), and logged a total of 28,500 miles, going from east to west against the prevailing winds.
THE MAN WHO WALKED BETWEEN THE TOWERS—PHILIPPE PETIT
Using an arrow, aerialist Philippe Petit shot wire between the twin towers of the World Trade Center using an arrow on the morning of August 14, 1974. He then walked out on the wire, more than 1,000 feet above New York City. He crossed the distance between the buildings eight times, even pausing to lie down on the wire.
SKYSCRAPING—ALAIN ROBERT
On a dreary Christmas Day in 2004, Alain Robert climbed up the outside of what was then the tallest building in the world, the Taipei 101 in Taiwan. The building is 1,679 feet high, and Robert climbed up the windows all the way to the top in pouring rain, using just his hands and a rope. He has climbed skyscrapers all over the world with nothing more than his bare hands.
SPEED RECORDS
SPEED RECORDS ARE OFTEN MEASURED against the speed of sound, which is approximately 761.18 miles per hour at ground level. This is known as Mach 1, named after the man who discovered it, Ernst Mach.
Many car and motorcycle speed records have been set at the Bonneville Salt Flats, a dry, salt lake in Utah. The salt prevents plants from growing and occasional rains pound the salt flat—so there are no bumps or natural obstacles. This makes it the best flat surface (and the biggest, at 150 square miles) in the world for testing really fast vehicles.
Vehicles of all sorts have allowed humans to travel at speeds of hundreds of miles per hour on Earth. In comparison, the fastest sprinters can only reach a speed of about 23 mph.
Chuck Yeager was the first human to fly faster than the speed of sound. On October 14, 1947, he flew an experimental plane called the X-1 to Mach 1.06—roughly 662 mph. The X-1 was built like a missile with a cockpit—not a standard airplane—and it shook almost to the point of disintegrating before he slowed it down. Up until Yeager accomplished this feat, many scientists thought that the shock waves from a sonic boom would destroy an airplane.
FASTEST BOAT
Ken Warby piloted his jet boat at a speed of 317 mph on the Blowering Dam in New South Wales, Australia, on October 8, 1978.
FASTEST MOTORCYCLE
Chris Carr took his motorcycle up to 354 mph in Utah on September 5, 2006.
FASTEST AUTOMOBILE
Andy Green drove the custom Thrust Super-SonicCar to 763 mph (Mach 1.02) in Nevada on October 15, 1997.
FASTEST PLANE
Air Force Major William J. Knight flew his X-15 at 4,520 mph (Mach 6.7) at an altitude of almost 20 miles above the United States on October 3, 1967.
SPEEDS … IN MILES PER HOUR
0.03 A fast snail (33 hours to go a mile)
3-5 Walking
15 Average bicycling speed
25 Top speed of a running human
30 Top speed of a running dog
60 Typical highway speed for cars
65–70 Top speed of both a cheetah and a sailfish
70 Fast football pass
103 Top speed of a pitcher’s fastball
130 Fast tennis serve
180 High-speed train
200 Diving speed of the world’s fastest bird, the peregrine falcon
260 Top speed of the fastest sports car, Volkswagen’s Bugatti Veyron
300 Wind speed of the strongest tornadoes
625 Cruising jet airliner
761 Sound
763 Current land speed record (fastest anyone has ever driven a vehicle on land)
1,038 Earth rotating
1,300 Cruising jet fighter
1,800 Bullet from high-powered riffle
17,500 Space shuttle in orbit
25,000 Velocity required for a rocket Earth’s gravity
670,616,629 Light
HOW DOES IT WORK?
MUSIC HAS BEEN RECORDED and played on many different types of machines since the late 1800s. These machines all have one thing in common: They change the sound of music (air vibrations, actually) into electrical signals and then “burn” those signals onto a material or device. To create vinyl records, electrical signals were used to vibrate a needle that cut grooves into plastic. On tape recorders, magnets format tiny particles of iron on tape to match the incoming signals. CDs use lasers to burn the same types of signals into microscopic bumps and divots on plastic disks.
MP3s are the newest format for storing and playing music, designed for use on computers and high-tech machines like iPods. MP3 is a computer file that uses a mathematical representation of songs that have usually been recorded in a music studio. As the MP3 file is being created, it eliminates some of the sounds from the original recording that can’t be heard by humans. When this is done, the file ends up being a small digital file that isn’t much different than a word-processing document. These small files are then stored on hard disk or a computer chip. in
The iPod has become the most popular MP3 player because of its cool styling and how easy it is to use. It acts as both the storage device and the player; you don’t have the music contained on one thing and then played on another (like individual CDs that have to be put into CD players).
By the way, MP3 stands for Motion Picture Experts Group, Audio Layer 3, which is a long name for the organization that decides how computers will read videos and songs. The name MP3 is really all you need to know.
Here’s an interesting comparison of how far our music technology has come.
One vinyl album = 45 minutes of music (two sides) 3 oz
One cassette tape = 90 minutes of music (two sides) 1.4 oz
One CD = 80 minutes of music (one side) .6 oz
One MP3 player = 1,000 hours of music (no sides) 4.8 oz
MONSTER HUNTING
ALMOST EVERY CULTURE IN THE WORLD has stories about monstrous beasts that roam about hidden in forests or in lakes or high up in the mountains. Scientists have tried to prove their existence for years, but these “monster hunters” have never found enough evidence two say for certain whether they are real.
Should you decide to go monster hunting on your own, you could look for the beasts own this list—if you think they might actually exist.
Fig. A
CHAMP (Fig. A)
Champ is a sea monster alleged to reside in Lake Champlain, which is located on the Vermont-New York border. Local residents claim it has a long, snakelike body and a huge head. You’ll need to do some scuba diving or have a small submarine to search down in the 400-foot depths of the cold lake. Either that, or wait for a very long time on the shore of Lake Champlain. If you do find it, don’t harm it in any way. Both New York and Vermont have passed laws protecting Champ—if anyone actually ever finds it.
MA: Funny thing about these lake monsters—they are so easy to spot, except when anyone is looking.
HPN: Have you ever tried to locate a fish when someone suddenly shouts, �
�Look over there!” Water creatures almost never stick their heads or bodies out into the air where they can be seen. If they did, you’d be seeing dozens of sharks and whales and squids every time you went swimming in the ocean.
CHUPACABRA (fig. B)
You are going to want to be especially careful in hunting for this doglike beast. It is said to stand on two legs and have a wicked temper. Start your search on grazing lands in remote parts of Latin America and the United States, where the chupacabra likes to eat the local cattle, especially goats (the name means “goat sucker” in Spanish). It would help to bring a dogcatcher; some scientists believe that it may actually be a type of canine mutation. You will have to be careful and quick: The chupacabra is said to be able to eat any kind of animal in just a few minutes.
BIGFOOT (SASQUATCH) (Fig. C) Described as a huge, manlike creature standing about 7 feet tall and covered completely in hair, he roams the forests of North America. Stories of him have been around for more than a century. Try to track him by his foot-prints after it rains. Bring a video camera, too. There is one very fuzzy video of a creature that the cameraman claims was Bigfoot. Watch out for fakes: The son of one man admitted that his father walked around in fake feet to trick people into thinking Bigfoot was around.
Fig. B
Fig. C
Fig. E
LOCH NESS MONSTER (Fig. D)
Known as “Nessie,” this sea serpent lives in a deep Scottish lake (loch is Scottish for “lake”). You’re going to need scuba equipment or a lot of patience. While Nessie has been photographed by several people who were allegedly in the right place at the right time, researchers in submarines have been unable to find it. The lake is incredibly cold and dark—you’ll need a wet suit and some underwater lights—and a popular theory is that the monster is a form of dinosaur called a plesiosaur that may have been trapped under ice when other dinosaurs became extinct.
YETI (THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN) (Fig. E)
This one is going to be pretty hard to track down since it lives up in the Himalayan Mountains. That means you’re going to have to do some climbing up through ice peaks to find him. Similar to Bigfoot, the yeti is said to be a very tall, manlike beast that seeks refuge in ice caves. Since he lives up among the highest mountains in the world, you will need backpacking equipment, oxygen tanks for the high altitude, and a local guide called a sherpa to lead you on your search. Look for his footprints, which many climbers have seen in the deep snow.
MA: So, you have climbers who are dizzy from lack of oxygen seeing fuzzy footprints—I wonder why that seems unconvincing?
HPN: Yeah, they’re seeing fuzzy footprints—several miles up a mountain where no animal is known to exist. Something is making those footprints and, dizzy or not, lots of climbers have seen a dark figure walking around on two legs.
Fig. D
Fig. F
JERSEY DEVIL (Fig. F)
This may be the scariest monster to look for. going to have to go deep into New Jersey’s Pine Barrens, a bleak and uninhabited stretch of dark forest in the south part of the state. This is the supposed home of a large, winged creature with glowing eyes and hooves. It is best to look for the Jersey Devil- after a snowfall, and check out rooftops for its hoof-prints after the beast has swooped down for a rest. Make sure to look around nearby farms, as the monster has often been accused of eating chickens. And listen carefully; it apparently emits a horrendous scream.
MA: I know the Jersey Devils are real—in fact, I root for them. They’re my local hockey team.
HPN: Laugh it up, but your favorite team takes its name from the mysterious New Jersey monster, which was first described in the late 1700s—more than a hundred years before the National Hockey League was even formed!
Reader, send us your evidence of these or other monsters.
THINGS TO REMEMBER YOUR WHOLE LIFE
THERE ARE SOME FACTS you’ll need to have at your fingertips for your whole life. We’ve put together some ways to make them easier to remember. Someday, you’ll thank us for this. If you don’t forget.
When turning almost anything, from screwdrivers to the caps on soda bottles, “right is tight and left is loose.” Right will turn things off or tighten them; left will turn them on or unscrew them.
When spelling words, it’s “I before E, except after C.” Check it out: believe vs. receive, relief vs. receipt, thief vs. deceive.
The names of planets in order from the sun: My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nachos (Pluto was dropped, remember?). This is the way to remember Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Number of days in a month: “30 days hath September, April, June, and November.” All the rest have 31 (except for February, which has 28 … and sometimes 29!).
The names of the Great Lakes: HOMES (Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior).
Left vs. Right: If you are getting left and right confused, hold up your thumbs and first fingers in the shape of an “L.” The correct facing “L” will be your left hand.
Here’s how to remember the spelling of “separate”: Separate is A RAT of a word to spell.
U.S. STATES AND CAPITALS
WE CANNOT THINK OF ANYTHING more mind-numbingly boring than a list of states and their capitals. But it does come in handy in games, and there is some fun to be had if you go just a bit outside of the ordinary.
STATE (year of statehood) CAPITAL REALLY?
Alabama (1819) Montgomery Now, this is confusing. Montgomery is in Montgomery County, but the county is named after Lemuel Montgomery, who died in the War of 1812, and the city is named after Richard Montgomery, who died fighting in the American Revolution. Good thing the state isn’t named Montgomery.
Alaska (1959) Juneau Juneau has no roads linking it to the rest of the state.
Arizona (1912) Phoenix The canals that bring water to Phoenix are built on top of ancient Indian waterways. Like the mythical phoenix, the new rises out of the old.
Arkansas (1836) Little Rock Guess what, the capital is named after … a little rock in the Arkansas River that people used as a marker.
California (1850) Sacramento Sacramento is located near where John Sutter owned a huge tract of land. The gold that set off the 1849 gold rush was found on Sutter’s land, and he eventually lost it all.
Colorado (1876) Denver Denver is the only city to win a bid to host an Olympics (1976 Winter Games) and then turn it down.
Connecticut (1788) Hartford In 1814, delegates from throughout New Eng land met in Hartford, threatening to secede from the U.S., which they thought was mishandling the War of 1812.
Delaware (1787) Dover Dover is the only capital to have a volunteer fire department, and it is one of just five capitals that is not on an interstate highway.
Florida (1845) Tallahassee Floridians picked Tallahassee as their capital in 1824 because it was midway between the two most important cities of the time, St. Augustine and Pensacola.
Georgia (1788) Atlanta Atlanta is the proud home of a 38-foot-tall Coca-Cola bottle made out of baseball equipment (not to mention Georgia’s largest city).
Hawaii (1959) Honolulu In the native language of Hawaii, Honolulu means “place of shelter,” and from 1809 on, the royal family of Hawaii lived there.
Idaho (1890) Boise Originally a fort, Boise was built where a stretch of the Oregon Trail crossed the routes to nearby mines.
Illinois (1818) Springfield You’ve got to visit the Pearson Museum in Springfield. Who could pass up exhibits on leeches and the great advantages of letting them suck your blood?
Indiana (1816) Indianapolis Indianapolis was an idea before it was a city—when Indiana became a state, they decided to build a capital as close to its center as possible. So, first they picked the site, then built Indianapolis.
Iowa (1846) Des Moines In 1843, Captain James Allen suggested building a fort where the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers crossed—only he wanted to call it Fort Raccoon. Too bad the War Department insisted on calling it Fort D
es Moines. It would have been nice to have an animal state capital.
Kansas (1861) Topeka Topeka means “a good place to dig prairie potatoes,” but don’t have visions of french fries. “Prairie potatoes” are herbs.
Kentucky (1792) Frankfort Daniel Boone is buried in Frankfort, but also in Defiance, Missouri—no one is sure which grave has his real bones.
Louisiana (1812) Baton Rouge People have lived near Baton Rouge for more than 10,000 years. Early French settlers saw a large red tree that marked the boundary between two native groups. The French called the tree a “baton rouge,” a red stick.
Maine (1820) Augusta Augusta is home to Fort Western. Built in 1754, it is the oldest wooden fort in America.