Grace Tran authors...

The Great Scientist, Albert Einstein

You may know him as Albert Einstein, one of the smartest scientists who’s ever lived.  But did you know that he failed his entrance exam to the Polytechnic school?  Or that he founded the theory of relativity?  Or that he wasn’t afraid of death?  There’s much more to him than one of the smartest scientists in the world.

This future genius was born on March 14, 1879; and didn’t start talking until he was four.  Before that, his parents took him to many doctors, but they found nothing wrong with him.  It was just his nature.  At ages 5, he encountered the compass and was fascinated by the invisible forces, which pulled the needle.  At age 12, he came across a geometry book, which he read it over and over again.  These two events marked the beginning of his still undiscovered genius.

As Albert grew up, he found life more difficult. After dropping out of Luitpold Gymnasium and failing much of his entrance exam to Swiss Federal Polytechnic School, he was finally admitted into the same school because of his exceptional marks in mathematics and physics.  He liked to study alone and cut classes and earned the hatred of some of his teachers.  He soon learned that he was a major target for the Nazis.  His pictures were posted on magazine covers with the words, “Not Yet Hanged” written beneath.

Life brightened for him as he reached 1905, the “miracle year.”   He published four papers in one of the best known physics journals, Annalen der Physik, and discovered the formula, E=mc2.  This suggested that tiny particles of matter could be transformed into large amounts of energy.  With the help of (possibly the most significant physicist of this generation and the founder of quantum theory) Max Planck, Einstein was became known to the world for his unusually smart brain.

He was offered countless positions in the best schools including the University of Zurich, the University of Prague, the University of Berlin, and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.  As more people started noticing him, his bond with Mileva Maric, his wife, got weaker.  It was not surprised that Einstein and Maric soon got a divorce.  Time passed, and the popular scientist started to fall in love with his cousin, Elsa Lowenthal.  

In November 1915, Einstein finished the theory of relativity. This was confirmed by the Astronomer Sir Arthur Eddington during the solar eclipse of 1919.  Two years later, Einstein won the Nobel Prize for Physics.  The theory of relativity is a complicated explanation, but very simply put, time is relative. For example, a man places two poles near a train track and uses a double-sided mirror to see both poles. When lightning strikes the poles, he sees it striking on both poles at the same time. On the other hand, a woman sitting on a train in this same scenario won’t see the lightning striking the poles simultaneously. Instead, she sees lightning striking one pole first followed by the other.

In his last years, Albert Einstein is known as an accomplished man.  Before his death, he was taken to the University Medical Center at Princeton for cures, but refused to have surgery.  He confidently spoke these words the day before his death, “I want to go when I want.  It is tasteless to prolong life artificially.  I have done my share, it is time to go.  I will do it elegantly.”  The next morning, on April 18, 1955, Albert Einstein left planet Earth peacefully at the age of 76.

HAIKU by Grace Tran

Haiku 1

The breeze glided through

  a figure’s robe detected-

    it halts, pointing to...

Haiku 2

A lonely wolf howls-

  his cry is met by others

    and all howl in chorus

Haiku 3

Raindrops glisten,

  on the green leaves-

    of the growing tree

Animal Lover Grace Tran Writes...

They’re Fascinating, Amazing, and Colorful, They’re…

Have you ever heard of a bird that flies backward, forward, and even hovers?  Well, today’s your lucky day, because you’ll learn about… HUMMINGBIRDS!  These miniature creatures get their name from the humming sound from their wings.  They moves fifty times per second, cool, right?! 

Hummingbirds feed on insects and nectar, so it’s important that they can fly backward.  First, a hummingbird deftly pokes the flower with a thin, needle-like bill, which varies in size depending on the bird.  Next, it extends its ultimate extendible tongue.  Due to the speed of its wings, in order to obtain enough energy, a hummingbird must eat continually. An ordinary hummingbird can eat up to 50-60 meals a day.  If a human ate that much, he would be eating 275 hamburgers a day!

There are about 300 different species of hummingbirds, and all are found in the Western Hemisphere.  Most are found in South America, but hummingbirds can be found all the way up to Alaska.  The hummingbird tree contains the smallest birds in the world.  Each about 2¼ inches to 8½ inches.  A majority of hummingbirds are metallic green. The throat of a male of a male hummingbird is usually ruby, blue, or emerald green. Most people would think of the males as the biggest, however, the females are actually the biggest ones. 

During courting time, male hummingbirds flaunt their colors and throw a fancy flying show to the females.  After the two hummingbirds mate, the female makes a nest using plant fibers, and spider webs.  She then covers the nest with lichens for camouflage.  A while later, she gives birth to two featherless baby birds. 

To conclude, I think that hummingbirds are really fascinating, amazing, and colorful creatures.  They eat gigantic meals for their size, are the smallest bird species in the world, and have beautiful colors.  I would love to see a hummingbird in real life and watch one fly backwards, forward, and hover.

Poetry at Its Best...

“Where I’m From”

By Grace Tran

I’m from China, Vietnam,

From Dunhua, Saigon.

I’m from mountains to seas,

A brother to eight.

Where I’m from, the grass grows green,

Exotic fruits are always seen.

My home is for three,

The gym on the fifth.

A flat screen TV on the seventh,

And pool on the fourth.

I’m from one bedroom without doors,

And way, way, way more.

Vegetarians my family,

Buddhism’s the religion.

I’m from a glowing golden statue,

And monks with flowing robes.

Where I’m from, the temple replaces church,

With a box full of fortunes,

And cushions on the floor.

I’m from a chain of chefs,

With millions of dishes.

Where I’m from, pots clink;

Then sink,

Into the cool flowing water.

I’m from soybean pork with a side of eggs,

From Soy and Saki, the “sushi-raunt”

From Candyland, to Wiily Wonka,

Plus green mint grass with peanut butter cups.

My home is not that big,

And religion not that strict.

I’m from chefs in the kitchen,

And food, food, food, food.

Where I’m from,

Where I’m from.

Future Scientist Grace Tran on...

BBUUZZZZ!  A BEE!!!

BBBUUZZZZZ.  You might know that familiar sound, the sound of a bee.  Most people know that bees can cause a painful sting.  But there’s more to these tiny winged creatures than you’d actually think.  Bees are like humans in many ways, playing many roles.  Every bee has a task, the three types of bees is the queen, drones, and workers.

The queen bee has one allotted task: to lay eggs.  She can lay as much as 3,000 eggs a day.  She defends her position through a secret substance that is from a tiny gland inside her mouth.  She smears it all over herself.  This mysterious substance is then licked off by worker bees, who depends on it to spread the word whether the queen is alive or not.  When words spread that the queen is no longer alive, worker bees prepare special large eggs.  When the new queens mature, they fight each other to the death.  Then, the champion arises and becomes the new queen. 

Drones are male bees, their job is to claim the queen in a “marriage flight.”  The queen flies loftily into the sky, followed by the drones.  One after another, the drones fall back due to their lack of rest, until one drone is left.  Queen and drone fly together for a brief moment, then the drone dies because of exhaustion.  The queen then returns to the hive, now able to lay fertilized eggs for about three years and starting many new branches of bees.

Worker bees have the most important job.  They are undeveloped females who deserve to be called “busy bees.”  They are constantly coming and going in search of pollen, nectar, and water.  These bees have an extremely masterly adapted body that includes a head, thorax, and segmented abdomen.  The rear legs allow them to scrape pollen as well as depositing pollen into baskets.  The sizable eyes allow the bee to see from quite a distance.  You may or may not know, bees have three eyes on its forehead, which these creatures use for looking at objects up close.  One antenna hangs from their triangular head, which provides them with a sense of smell and touch.

Worker bees are fascinating because in one short month, they play multiple roles.  For example, they play as a nurse for the hive.  Feeding the queen, drones, and larvae.  This is very arduous work, considering that the larvae alone can eat 1,300 meals a day.  In order to feed them, the worker bees must make numerous trips to and from the hive.  Another role that the worker bee plays is a scavenger.  As it reaches old age, the worker bee must fill its honey sac.  In order to do this, it must visit about 1,000 individual florets.

I would like to be a worker bee.  I wouldn’t want to be the queen bee because I feel like they’re lazy, only laying eggs all day.  That wouldn’t be fun, just boring.  I want adventure, to go out into the world.  I would not want to be a drone, who wants to chase the queen like your life depended on it?!  Worker bees are hard working and contribute a lot to the hive.

In brief, bees are interesting in many ways.  The queen lays eggs, the drones earn the queen in the “marriage flight,” and the workers truly deserve the title of “busy bees.”  I’ve shared with you what bee I want to be, what bee do YOU want to “bee-come?”