QUES: Fossils may form in other ways. Fossils can be preserved almost completely. In this process, the organism doesnt change much. As seen below, tree sap may cover an organism. With time, the sap hardens. It turns to into amber. The original organism is preserved. This is very exciting for scientists. They are able to study the DNA of the organism that no longer lives on Earth. Some animals have been found frozen in ice. Others have been found in tar pits after falling in. Molds and casts are another way organisms can be fossilized. Have you ever walked in soft mud and left footprints? Once in a while, these traces of organisms can be preserved. In this case, nothing is left of the organism. A mold is an imprint of an organism that is preserved in rock. The organisms remains break down completely. There is nothing left of the original plant and animal.
Do you have any questions?
MY QUESTION: What are other ways organisms can be preserved?

QUES: Sara wanted to play on a baseball team. She had never tried to swing a bat and hit a baseball before. Her Dad gave her a bat and together they went to the park to practice. Sara wondered if she could hit a ball. She wasn't sure if she would be any good. She really wanted to play on a team and wear a real uniform. She couldn't wait to get to the park and test out her bat. When Sara and her Dad reached the park, Sara grabbed the bat and stood a few steps away from her Dad. Sara waited as her Dad pitched the ball to her. Her heart was beating fast. She missed the first few pitches. She felt like quitting but kept trying. Soon she was hitting the ball very far. She was very happy and she couldn't wait to sign up for a real team. Her Dad was very proud of her for not giving up.
Do you have any questions?
MY QUESTION: Who pitched the ball to Sara and where did it occur?

QUES: The dermis is the inner layer of skin. The dermis has blood vessels and nerve endings. The nerve endings explain why your skin is sensitive. You can sense pain, pressure, and temperature. You cut your finger and it starts to bleed. What has happened? If your skin bleeds, it means you have cut the dermis layer and damaged blood vessels. The cut really hurts. It hurts because of the nerve endings in this skin layer. The dermis also contains hair follicles and two types of glands. Hair follicles are structures where hairs originate. Each hair grows out of a follicle. Hair passes up through the epidermis. It then extends above the skin surface. Oil glands produce an oily substance. The oil is secreted into hair follicles.
Do you have any questions?
MY QUESTION: How is the dermis related to skin sensitivity?

QUES: Chinese Influences: The Japanese were forced out of the Korean peninsula in the sixth century, but not before the Koreans had bequeathed to the Yamato court copies of the sacred images and scriptures of Chinese Buddhism. Just as Christianity introduced Mediterranean culture into northern Europe, so Buddhism brought Chinese culture into Japanese society. Throughout the seventh and eighth centuries numerous Japanese monks, scholars, and artists made the perilous trip west across the Sea of Japan to study Chinese religion, history, music, literature, and paintinglater to be brought back for further development in Japan. An outstanding figure of this time was Prince Shotoku, who in 604 developed the "Seventeen-Article Constitution," outlining a code of human conduct and the ideals of state as a basic law for the nation. He also established relations with the Sui dynasty in China. Through him, the Japanese imperial court developed Chinese patterns of centralized government, with its formal bureaucracy of eight court ranks. The Chinese calendar was used to calculate the year of Japan's foundation by counting back the 1,260 years of the Chinese cosmological cycle. Thus, 660 b.c. is still the official date celebrated nationwide. At this early stage in its history Japan was already (for the most part) only nominally ruled by the emperor. De facto power was exercised by the militarily and economically strongest family. The Sogas had promoted Buddhism as an imperially sanctioned counterweight to the native Shinto religion, along with the new Chinese customs, to weaken the influence of their more conservative rivals. But they in turn were ousted in a.d. 645 by Nakatomi Kamatari, founder of the great Fujiwara clan, which was to rule Japanese affairs for hundreds of years and provide prominent advisers to the emperor even up to the 19th century.
Do you have any questions?
MY QUESTION:
Who helped the Japanese imperial court develop Chinese patterns of centralized government?