The Amazon River
Read about the amazing creatures in the Amazon.
This river is also the widest river in the world; 6.8 miles from bank to bank.
Nearly all the water that falls into the northern rainforests of South America washes into the Amazon, making the river swell to its record size.
The Amazon river is home to some amazing creatures. The largest freshwater fish in the world, the arapaima, which can weigh as much as 440 pounds, is found only in the Amazon.
The piranha, the most ferocious fish in the world, is also native to the Amazon. Most species of piranha travel around by themselves most of the time. Only at certain times of the year do they get-together in huge schools, making them dangerous to people and other animals in the river. A single piranha has a painful bite, but is not deadly by itself. The jaws of the fish are so sharp that natives living on the banks of the Amazon can catch the fish and use the jaws as scissors!
The giant anaconda lives in and around the Amazon as well. They are the largest snakes in the world, with the biggest being over 29 feet long, and are capable of slithering along the ground, climbing trees and swimming.
Anacondas are not poisonous; instead of venom, they use their powerful bodies to crush their prey or hold them under water until they drown. The anaconda's digestive system works very slowly. If the anaconda has a large meal, like an entire sheep, it can go for months without getting hungry.
During the rainy season, the Amazon floods and rises as much as thirty feet above its dry season levels. Forests near the river are totally submerged, and the leaves, fruit and insects that get washed into the river during the flooding keep the river's creatures alive.
Little fish eat the debris from the flooded forests, and the fish are eaten by bigger creatures, such as the Amazon River dolphin. The river dolphin is now a threatened species because of the loss of trees along the banks of the Amazon. Less debris gets into the river to feed the small fish, and then there are not enough fish to feed the dolphins.
The source of the Amazon River has only recently been discovered. In the year 2000, explorers using satellite photos and global positioning satellites claimed that they had found the start of the Amazon as a small stream flowing from the mountain called Nevado Mismi in Peru. From there on out, countless other streams flowing into it, called tributary rivers, add to the Amazon, making it into a monster of a river by the time it reaches the Atlantic Ocean.
Ancient Roman Life
After breakfast, Romans would get dressed, usually wearing togas. A toga was like a big sheet that wrapped around the body and draped over one shoulder.
Most of the time, Romans would spend quite a bit of time at the m the center of the city. The forum was a type of market where the people of Rome could do their banking, trading, and shopping. Rome participated in trade and these markets were also a place to go to acquire valuables from other places. Cultural events such as public speaking, festivals, and religious ceremonies were also conducted there.
The public bath was another place to which Romans tried to go at least once a day. At the baths, there were hot and cold pools, towels, slaves to wait on you, steam rooms, saunas, exercise rooms, and hair cutting salons. The baths could hold up to 1,500 people. Later in the day, the wealthier Romans would rest while the poorer Romans worked.
Entertainment was also important to the Romans. The ancient Greeks were intent on watching dramas from a grassy hillside outdoors, but the Romans, in their structured society, built special theatres especially for the plays. There were many theatres set up and they were all free to the public, so many people went to see the dramas that were performed. This gave the Romans a way to relax and to be entertained while they were in the city.
In Rome, the father was the head of the family; he owned the land, the servants, and all the property contained within it. If you were a Roman child, your parents would have taught you at home until you were old enough to go to school.
Mothers would teach daughters how to spin, weave, and sew. Fathers taught sons Roman laws, customs, history, and physical training that prepared them for war. The goal of school was to teach the children to be effective speakers. School started before sunrise in ancient Rome, and ended after sunset.
Weddings and funerals were two events that ancient Romans participated in. In a wedding, the bride would get ready and be escorted to her groom's home. She would sprinkle the door with sacred oil and then decorate it with ribbons. Her groom would then pick her up and carry her into her new home.
The ceremony would take place and the two would sign the marriage contract. After the ceremony there was a giant feast that the bride, groom and their friends and family would enjoy!
Funerals were much sadder than weddings. In ancient Rome, funerals were very noisy because mourners were allowed to show their grief. The deceased body was carried through the city while a flute and horn player followed with music. The procession would stop in the forum and a eulogy would be given about the person who died. Finally, when the burial destination was reached (usually outside the city walls) the body was cremated, the ashes gathered in an urn, and then placed inside a family tomb.
Archaeologists, Looking For Remnants of the Past!
Mrs. Baker, the school principal) called her friend Jim, an archaeologist, to come visit one of the classes at her school. She wanted him to talk to the students about Archaeology. "It would be wonderful for the students to learn from a real archaeologist what archaeology is all about, why it is important to us, and also what kinds of things an archaeologist does." Of course Jim had agreed to come, and now he was trying to figure out what to say to the students.
The next day, the archaeologist walked into the classroom and found himself facing about 40 restless middle-school students. He thought hard about what he could say to capture their attention. Finally, he began, "Well, hello to all of you, my name is Jim, and I am an Archaeologist.
Does anyone know what an archaeologist does?" A girl named Sophie raised her hand; "Don't archaeologists dig up dinosaur bones? She asked. "What a great question," Jim responded, "but no, they do not. Pale-ontologists are the people who dig up dinosaur bones. Archaeologists are the people who look for remnants from the past. They want to discover the way people lived long ago and why, and they want to preserve the objects that they find. These objects are called artifacts." He went on, "History is very important for us, and archaeologists are the people who find the history of people of the past and introduce it to people today."
