Why is Pluto not considered to be a planet?

(Picture: Pluto and moon Charon)

During our teaching sessions on Thursday two of the people in our group did lessons on the planets in our solar system. Then came the question why is Pluto not a planet anymore? Therefore, I have decided to use that question for my blog this week and this is what I found according to National Geographic News:
Pluto is no longer considered to be a planet anymore because it does not fit the new definition of what a planet is, even though the word planet never really had an official definition before. The new definition of a planet is “a full-fledged planet is an object that orbits the sun and is large enough to have become round due to the force of its own gravity. In addition, a planet has to dominate the neighborhood around its orbit.” (National Geographic News). In addition to not meeting the requirement of the new definition Pluto also does not dominate it’s neighborhood or in other words is not much larger than its large moon, Charon, like all the other planets and also unlike the other planets Pluto does not keep its area clean. A planet that dominates its neighborhood tends to keep it

clean by picking up or sweeping up comets, asteroids, and other debris to clear the path within their orbits. Pluto is now in a new classification and considered to be a dwarf planet along with 44 others.

Why do animals eat their poop?

Fly
I know it’s gross, but while watching Emergency vets again this past weekend they did another episode on the strange things that animals eat and time after time they mentioned that some animals even eat their own poop. So for my blog this week I decided to find out why animals eat their poop.
According to animal poop animals actually eat their poop on a regular basis. The animals that they included are rabbits, rodents, gorillas, dung beetles, flies, and dogs. The reason that herbivores such as the rabbits and rodents eat their own poop is because their plant diet is hard to digest so the poop helps it to digest better. Dogs and flies eat their poop because it has protein in it which is good for the animals. Dogs especially likes cat poop because it has a higher level of protein in it. In general animals eat their poop because the poop contains vitamins that are produced by their intestinal bacteria and are unable to absorb them through the intestinal was so they obtain them by eating the poop.
Thank you for your interest in reading my blog. I know that it is very gross (even I had a hard time with it) but it was also interesting because I always scolded our dogs for even trying to eat their poop.

Rabbit

Why is chocolate bad for dogs?

Sick Dog
Have you ever heard that dogs can get sick and even die from chocolate? Well I have and I had no idea that chocolate could have such a negative effect on dogs. Therefore, I have decided to explore the facts on why dogs cannot eat chocolate.

While dogs really enjoy the taste of chocolate it can result in devastating effects for your dog such as death. In chocolate there is a stimulant called theobromine that is in most chocolate that is harmful to dogs and even horses. Theobromine is a stimulant that is found in the cocoa plant and has a larger amount in baker’s chocolate than in milk chocolate. The symptoms a dog will have if it has eaten too much chocolate are crying, vomiting, and diarrhea. Now you might think well how can my dog die from those symptoms? Well, actually those are warning symptoms for you to take your dog immediately to the vet. The reason being is that if the theobromine is left in the dog’s system too long it will get absorbed into the bloodstream and then into the heart. When the theobromine reaches the heart it will cause the dog’s heart to beat extremely fast and then give out which causes the dog to die. Other symptoms to watch out for are disproportionate urination, muscle twitching, and excessive panting. The amount of lethal chocolate varies for each dog depending on age, dog’s health, size, and the type of chocolate.

What are the facts of plumeria's?

Growing up in Hawai'i I've always been surrounded by the beautiful Plumeria trees. I've grown to love these flowers and made them my favorite type of flowers. Plumeria flowers offers great beauty and a lovely fragrance and I want to go beyond that and find out more facts about these flowers.

Pink and Yellow

Scientific Classification:

• Kingdom: Plantae



• Division: Magnoliophyta



• Class: Magnoliopsida



• Order: Gentianales



• Family: Apocynaceae



• Genus: Plumeria

Dark Red/Maroon (My Favorite)

Features

• Usually has 5 petals (may have more or less depending on type)
  


• Colors vary from a dark purple through the reds, pinks, white, and yellow
  


• Plumerias also vary from a solid color to being multi colored
  


• Has a very soft velvety like feel to the petals and also very thick
  


• Can last one to two days on the ground after falling off the tree
  
  Pretty in pink
  
  
  

History

• Native to the forests of southern Mexico and south into Panama



• Used by Indians for medical purposes that ranged from poultices to emetics



• Became a favorite to the Spanish who then planted them near their churches, cemeteries, and monasteries.



• The Spanish also took the plumeria flowers with them on their travels which is why we have them here in Hawaii.
  

Purple.......interesting

Plumerias in Hawaii

• Used for making leis due to its beautiful fragrance and durability



• Other uses include decoration (including in ear and/or hair) and also for fragrance



• Prefers sunshine rather than moisture resulting in more frequent blooming in Kona rather than Hilo.



• Seasonal Plant therefore its drops its leaves at a certain time of the year depending on the weather in its environment

Plumeria Lei