It is used in some solder. It is used in covering for wires that carry high voltage. Some tennis rackets have lead in them to make them heavier. It is used to balance wheels of cars, to make statues, and to make decorative looks in buildings.
Many lead compounds are used to make colored glazes in ceramics. Lead can be used in PVC pipes. Lead compounds are added to candles to make them burn better. Lead glass has lead(II) oxide in it. Lead compounds are still used as pigments in some places. Lead compounds were added to gasoline, but are now outlawed. Some lead compounds are semiconductors and are used in photodetectors.
Lead was used in many red, yellow, and white pigments in paints. Lead was also used in pesticides. Lead used to be used in pipes carrying water, but now it is not because lead can leach into the water.
Although it can be safely touched, exposure to lead should be avoided – it is very toxic to humans and other animals when swallowed, and its use is restricted in many countries.
If someone is exposed to lead for a long time, it ruins their kidneys and gives them abdominal pains. Lead also ruins the nervous system. Lead paint was being eaten by children and they were getting lead poisoning.
The best way to understand lead and its properties is to read its MSDS.
Bell
A bell is a simple musical instrument. Most bells are made of metal. Bells are also in churches to announce the time between hours. Ships usually carry a ship's bell. Alarm bells warn of danger. Some bells are in bell towers.
Transformers (toy line)
Transformers are robots that turn into other things. Usually they turn into vehicles, like cars or jets.
Transformers started in 1984 as a toy line, but then an animated series and a comic book were made. In 1986 a movie came out. In 2002 a new series and story line called Transformers Armada came out. this was followed by two more shows, Energon and Cybertron.
Transformers is about different things sometimes. Usually it is about the heroic Autobots fighting the evil Decepticons. The Autobots are usually led by Optimus Prime. The Decepticons are led by Megatron.
The Dynasty of Primes were the first seven Primes in Cybertronian history. They were on a quest to harvest Energon using the Star Harvester. In some documents of history, they were loosely known as "The Thirteen".
Simplicity
When something is simple, it is very easy to understand or to do. The opposite is hard or "complex" or "difficult". Simplicity is the quality of being simple.
"Simple" can mean something that is only made up of a few parts. It lacks complexity.
"Simple" can mean that something or someone is humble (lowly) or common:
"Simple" can also be used to refer to someone whose mind thinks in a very simple way. Calling a person "simple minded" is usually rude.
Mathematician
A mathematician is someone who studies mathematics, either as a hobby or as a job. Many mathematicians are math professors at universities, or work at cryptography. Euclid, Ramanujan, Sir Isaac Newton are some of the most famous early mathematicians.
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian region of the United States. Its capital and largest city is Charleston. It is often abbreviated W. Va. or simply WV.
West Virginia is bordered by Pennsylvania to the north, by Ohio to the north and west, by Kentucky to the west, by Maryland to the north and east, and by Virginia to the east and south. The Ohio and Potomac Rivers form parts of the boundaries.
Before the American Civil War, West Virginia practiced slavery as part of the state of Virginia. Slaves, at first Native American but increasingly brought from Africa in the slave trade, were forced to grow tobacco, mine coal, and be personal servants. Many slaves were rented from owners in other parts of the state to work in the mines. In the 19th century, white people kept slaves in order to earn money by selling them south to states like Texas, Louisiana, and Georgia.
West Virginia was admitted into the union as a slave state in 1863. Slavery was abolished after the war, and Confederate veterans voted the politicians who passed the laws out of office.
West Virginia was once a part of Virginia. At the beginning of the American Civil War, Virginia and the other southern states seceded from the United States, which means they chose to not be a part of it anymore. Slaves were fewer in the west than in other parts, and those in West Virginia who were against slavery were not objecting on moral grounds. They saw it as bad for free labor. While slavery was an issue in other parts of Virginia, in the western counties the issues were taxation and being governed from a state capital that was far away. The people in Western Virginia had far more in common with their neighboring states of Pennsylvania and Ohio than with the Commonwealth of Virginia. So this was an area of Union support.
On June 20, 1863, West Virginia became the thirty-fifth state of the United States. But it was not an easy process. There had been some discussion of the area becoming a state since the early 1800s. It took three conventions at Wheeling from 1861 to 1863. The process divided friends and communities.
Statehood was not universally accepted in West Virginia. While there were no large scale battles, there was a good deal of guerilla warfare in attempts to undermine the new government. Confederates raided into West Virginia trying to terrorize the citizens. Despite Confederate efforts to topple the state government, Washington provided both economic and political support. Union military successes outside the state helped keep the state government in power. After the war there were bitter resentments between those for and against statehood. Virginia even tried to force West Virginia back into becoming a part of Virginia again in 1871. But West Virginia remained a sovereign state despite the efforts.
West Virginia is often called the "Mountain State" because it is entirely within the Appalachian Mountain Range, and there are many hills and mountains throughout the state. The highest one is Spruce Knob, which is 4,863 feet above sea level. There are many rivers, including the Ohio, the Potomac, the Kanawha, and the Monongahela.
Virginia
Virginia is a state in the United States. Its capital is Richmond and its largest city is Virginia Beach. The official name of Virginia is the "Commonwealth of Virginia".
Virginia is bordered (touching) by West Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia (across the Potomac River) to the north, by Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, by North Carolina and Tennessee to the south, and by Kentucky and West Virginia to the west.
Native Americans were the first people to settle in Virginia.
Virginia became a state in 1788 after the American Revolution. Before it became a state of the United States, Virginia was one of the Thirteen Colonies of Great Britain. Virginia was founded (started) in 1607 in Jamestown, Virginia.
The state of West Virginia was part of Virginia until the American Civil War. Virginia then left (seceded from) the United States and joined the Confederate States of America. The western counties of Virginia seceded from Virginia to form a new state which was loyal to the Union. After the end of the Civil War, Virginia became part of the United States again in 1870, but the counties that had left to start West Virginia did not join Virginia again.
Virginia is the state where eight United States presidents were born. This is more than any other state.
The first African-American slaves were sent to Virginia.