Some questions just don't have answers...A DJ-ism About This Page:

[Chrissi]

DJ asked these two questions this week. The first was after the PassPorter Meet last week when he spent a bit of time deep in conversation with Crystal. The second question he asked as I was putting him to bed for the second time tonight.

1. "Mommy, do penguins sit down?" I'm still trying to find this answer. What happened to 'Why is grass green?' THAT I could answer.

2. "Mommy, do you remember when we were watching that show about engineering disasters of the 70's - the Modern Marvels show - on the History Channel today? What do you think caused the Edmund Fitzgerald to sink?" How did he remember the name of the show, the channel, and the name of the dang boat?!?! And no one knows why it sank!!! And this is what he's using to put off bedtime these days. Smart little bugger. I'm Type A, OCD. He knows I'll be up all night doing research on the E. F. now so we can talk about it over breakfast.

[mcc0313]

Chrissi -

What great questions...the 2nd one would have blown me out of the water all together so while I can't help you with the Edmund Fitzgerald question I can give you some insight on the penguin question (as I was asked this when DD was about 5 after a trip to the aquarium).

To help penguins swim their legs are set far back on their body which is why they walk upright when on land, their wings have changed over time to allow them to swim rapidly. Becuase of the way their body is shaped they do not sit down on their behinds per se, (since the legs are so far back I do not think their bodies bend that way) but they do have the ability to move on their stomachs. My daughter asked this becuase she said they looked tired from standing so much so I told her that while they can't sit they can lean and rest on their stomachs (not that I know if they do this for that reason also).

[chezp]

What awesome questions! I wish I could help with the answers though...

[simbarel]

Great, now I have Gordon Fitzgerald in my head!

[Chrissi]

I did get an answer to question #1. I emailed the Philadelphia Zoo and asked a volunteer docent. I got this back this evening:

Dear Christina,
Thank you for sharing the question Do penguins sit down? asked by your 6 year old son......as you and I both found out, it's not initially an easy one to answer. If you and your son were at our Zoo, you looked at Humboldt penguins, a species that lives along the Pacific coast of South America. I can understand why he asked the question....as you looked at our critters, they were either standing on land or swimming in the water. If you saw a video about an Antarctic Emperor penguin, it was standing upright on the ice, balancing an egg on its feet, with a brood patch of warm belly skin draped over it.

But the answer is.....YES, they do SIT. In all the penguin species that breed, lay an egg and incubate the egg on land, there is some form of nest, and they do lower themselves over the egg to incubate it. Because of their stiff tail feathers, they may not position their bottoms quite the way we do when we sit. They do flex their hips and knees, as we do, however theirs are hidden by body feathers....only their ankles and feet protrude and are visible to us.

Keep enjoying your son and his wonderful questions.

Sincerely,
Rosalind H. Troupin
Docent volunteer
Philadelphia Zoo

The Philly Zoo rocks!!!

[mcc0313]

Originally Posted by Chrissi

I did get an answer to question #1. I emailed the Philadelphia Zoo and asked a volunteer docent. I got this back this evening:



The Philly Zoo rocks!!!

Chrissi - Wow you are definitely the research queen becuase for all the information I looked up I never found that answer. I only got that they lean and rest but never that they actually sit...

Love the update....

[skateycat]

thanks for the info on peguins...never thought of it before...wow...you are the research queen, girl!

[Cam22]

What a wonderfully curious mind DJ has!

[SouthernBelle]

DJ sure comes up with good questions and what a great answer from the PHilly Zoo

I thought it was a storm that caused the Edmund Fitzgerald to sink.

[bsblady01]

smart kid you have.

[Tink and co.]

I think DJ needs to come visit with Jack. Jack usually peppers me with questions during heavy traffic, though. And Jack could probably answer both of those questions...I'll see what he has to say!

[debsta922]

Too funny... it's amazing what they can come up with for questions...
the other day Nick asked me a question that I did not have an answer for, something about space and the atmosphere... anyway, when I told him I didn't know he said "that's ok mommy we can look it up on-line when we get home...."

[GATechGal]

Here's the Wiki article on the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald (including a mention of the Discovery show that DJ talked about:

When Fitzgerald first vanished, it was widely believed the boat had snapped in half on the lake surface owing to storm action. Similar surface breakups in the past suggested bow and stern sections would be found miles apart on the lake floor. When underwater surveys revealed these sections were just yards from each other, it was concluded that Fitzgerald had instead broken upon hitting the lake floor.

A Coast Guard investigation postulated that the accident was caused by ineffective hatch closures. These devices were unable to prevent waves from inundating the cargo hold. The flooding occurred gradually and probably imperceptibly throughout the final day, and finally resulted in a fatal loss of buoyancy and stability. As a result, the boat plummeted to the bottom without warning.

The Coast Guard report proved controversial. The most common alternative theory contends that inoperative radar forced the crew to rely on inaccurate charts. As a result, Fitzgerald briefly ran aground or scraped a shoal near Caribou Island without the crew being aware of it. Consequently, she received bottom damage, which caused her to gradually take on water until she sank so suddenly in the deep water that none of her crew had time to react. The ship, pile-driving into the lake bottom, snapped in half, and its stern landed upside-down on the bottom. (If so, given the ship's length vs. the depth of the water, the stern could still have been above water when the bow hit bottom.) This theory is supported by final radio communications between Anderson and Fitzgerald; Anderson had been struck by two large waves that were heading toward Fitzgerald. If the hull had indeed been breached, it would be difficult to prove. Fitzgerald has settled in mud up to her load marks, making it impossible to inspect for damage.

A documentary created and aired by the Discovery Channel investigated a large "fold" found in the hull plating. Previous defects with cargo hold covers and clamps as well as cracking issues were also addressed. Through the use of wave tanks and computer simulation, the Discovery Channel team concluded the loss of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald was due to a rogue wave. Reports show three large waves were detected, two of which were reported by the Edmund Fitzgerald. As per the investigation, it was theorized that the SS Edmund Fitzgerald was badly battered by the first two waves, further damaging the dual radar (which shared a common antenna) and the hatch covers. It was surmised ultimately that the SS Edmund Fitzgerald took on water through the damaged cargo hold covers, which flooded the ore cargo and severely stressed the ship's hull, and was then overwhelmed by the third wave that snapped the weakened ship in half.

[Carousel96]

Chrissi,
There was a museum on Michigan's UP (could it have been the Shipwreck Museum?) that had a great display on the Edmund Fitzgerald. If you can get to their website, I'm sure it will answer DJ's question (at least as to the prevailing theories)-- or you will find another museum docent more than willing to share their knowledge.