A Guide To The Scientific Knowledge Of Things Familiar - novelonlinefull.com
You’re read light novel A Guide To The Scientific Knowledge Of Things Familiar Part 68 online at NovelOnlineFull.com. Please use the follow button to get notification about the latest chapter next time when you visit NovelOnlineFull.com. Use F11 button to read novel in full-screen(PC only). Drop by anytime you want to read free – fast – latest novel. It’s great if you could leave a comment, share your opinion about the new chapters, new novel with others on the internet. We’ll do our best to bring you the finest, latest novel everyday. Enjoy
Q. _Why is it said "A DRY cold MARCH never BEGS BREAD?"_
A. Because the _dry cold winds_ of March prepare the soil for _seeds_, which germinate, and produce fruit in the autumn.
Q. _Why is it said that "A WET MARCH makes a SAD autumn?"_
A. Because, if _March be wet_, so much of the seed _rots in the ground_, that the autumn crops are spoiled.
Q. _Why is it said that "MARCH FLOWERS make NO summer BOWERS?"_
A. Because, if the _spring be very mild_, vegetation gets too forward, and is _pinched by the nightly frosts_, so as to produce neither fruits nor flowers.
Q. _Why is it said "A LATE SPRING makes a FRUITFUL YEAR?"_
A. Because if the vegetation of spring be _backward_, the frosty nights will _do no harm_; for the fruits and flowers will not put forth their tender shoots, till the nights become _too warm to injure them_.
Q. _Why is it said that "APRIL SHOWERS bring MAY FLOWERS?"_
A. Before seeds can germinate, _three_ things are essential:--Darkness, Heat, and Moisture. April showers supply the princ.i.p.al nourishment on which seeds depend for existence.
Q. _Does RAIN-water possess any fertilizing properties BESIDES that of mere MOISTURE?_
A. Yes; rain-water contains "AMMONIA," to which much of its fertilizing power may be attributed.
(Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen. Common hartshorn is only ammonia and water.)
Q. _Why has G.o.d made NOVEMBER a very RAINY month?_
A. Because the rain hastens the _putrefaction of the fallen leaves_, and this makes the earth fertile.
Q. _Why is there MORE rain FROM SEPTEMBER to MARCH than from March to September?_
A. From September to March, the temperature of the air is _constantly decreasing_; on which account, its _capacity for holding vapour_ is on the _decrease_, and the vapour is precipitated as rain.
Q. _Why is there LESS rain FROM MARCH to SEPTEMBER, than from September to March?_
A. From March to September, the temperature of the air is _constantly increasing_; on which account, _its capacity for holding vapour_ is on the _increase_, and very little is precipitated as rain.
Q. _Why is the RISING SUN in summer accompanied with a BREEZE?_
A. Because the heat of the rising sun _stops the radiation of heat_ from the earth, and _warms its surface_.
Q. _How does this WARMTH produce a BREEZE?_
A. The air (resting on the earth's surface) is _warmed by contact_, ascends upwards, and _colder air rushes in_ to fill up the void, which is the cause of the _morning_ breeze.
Q. _Why is there often an EVENING BREEZE during the summer months?_
A. The earth _radiates heat at sun-set_, and the air is cooled down quickly by contact: this condensation causes a _motion in the air_, which is the evening breeze.
Q. _Why are TROPICAL ISLANDS always subject to a SEA-breeze every MORNING (i. e. a breeze blowing from the sea to the land)?_
A. The solar rays are unable to heat the surface of the _sea_ as they do the _earth_; therefore, the _air resting on the earth_ is more _heated_ than the _air resting on the sea_; and the colder sea air blows _inland_ to restore the equilibrium.
Q. _Why is the LAND BREEZE UNHEALTHY?_
A. Because it is frequently loaded with exhalations from _putrefying animal_ and _vegetable_ substances.
Q. _Why is the SEA BREEZE fresh and HEALTHY?_
A. Because it pa.s.ses over the fresh sea, and is _not_ laden with noxious exhalations.
It is _healthy_, therefore, to walk on the sea-beach before ten o'clock in the morning; but _unhealthy_ after sun-set.
Q. _Why is there generally a fresh breeze from the SEA (in English watering places) during the summer and autumn MORNINGS?_
A. As the _land_ is _more heated by the sun_ than the _sea_; therefore, air resting on the _land_ is hotter than air resting on the _sea_; in consequence of which, cooler sea air glides _inland_, to restore the equilibrium.
Q. _Why does the SEA BREEZE feel COOL?_
A. As the sun cannot make the surface of the _sea_ so hot as the surface of the _land_; therefore, the air which blows from the sea, feels _cooler than the air of the land_.
Q. _Why are TROPICAL ISLANDS subject to a LAND BREEZE every EVENING (i. e. a breeze blowing from the land towards the sea)?_
A. The _surface of land_ cools down _faster_ (after sun-set) than the surface of the _sea_: in consequence of which, the air of the cold land _is condensed, sinks down_, and spreads itself into the warmer _sea air_, causing the LAND BREEZE.
Q. _Why is the LAND BREEZE COOL?_
A. As the surface of the land is cooled at sun-set _quicker than the surface of the sea_; therefore, the seaman feels the air from the land to be chill.
