What is special about these building stones? (Hint: They are from a building in St. Augustine, Florida.)
Excellent job, as usual! These building stones are made of coquina, a type of sedimentary rock that is made up almost entirely of pieces of sea shells that are naturally cemented together with minerals.
Anastasia Island, which includes St. Augustine Beach where our beach house is, sits on a thick layer of coquina. This rock was quarried to build the large fort, Castillo de San Marco, as well as the smaller Fort Mantanzas, the St. Grancis Barracks, the Cathedral, and quite a few other buildings. These particular bricks are on St. George Street, beside my favorite bakery.
The Spanish used Coquina for the forts because it was the only building stone around, but it was an excellent choice. When the British attacked St. Augustine in 1702, the coquina absorbed the impact of the cannon balls instead of shattering as other stone would. The British attacked again in 1739 (The War of Jenkin's Ear), and again their cannon fire was thwarted by the coquina.
Science Photo of the Day
This is coquina, a limestone consisting almost entirely of shelly fossils. Most limestones consist of fossils or other carbonate grains held tight by hardened matrix or by crystals of calcite cement chemically precipitated between the grains. Coquina has no such matrix and only a little cement, and so it consists of shells with empty space between them. The result is a light porous rock with a texture like that of a granola bar. The stone was quarried on nearby Anastasia Island.
Morgan from Mrs.Webber's class
Hello Mr.Krampf,
I think that the stones might be special because it's from a long time ago or made of shells. Were those stones on a fort? Have you gotten any info on the cats turns brown when it gets old? What creats fog in the morning?
What is the biggest cat fish?
Your admirer,
Morgan
Hi Morgan
The fog that you sometimes see in the morning is caused by warm, humid air mixing with cooler air. This causes some of the water vapor to condense into tiny droplets that float in the air. It is the same basic process that forms clouds, so when you are in the fog, it is just like being inside a cloud.
The biggest catfish ever caught was a Mekong Catfish. It weighed 646 pounds, and was almost 9 feet long. It was caught in Thailand in May of 2005.
I finally found an answer for your question about cats turning brown as they get older. It has to do with a enzyme called tyrosine. As they get older, their body stops producing enough tyrosine. If they have black hair, it changes to a red-brown color. Lack of tyrosine is what causes human hair to turn gray. Great question!
Photo of the day
They're made from volcanic lava
photo of day 10/6
are the building stones made of coral?
Photo of day 10/6
This is coquina, a limestone consisting almost entirely of shelly fossils. Most limestones consist of fossils or other carbonate grains held tight by hardened matrix or by crystals of calcite cement chemically precipitated between the grains. Coquina has no such matrix and only a little cement, and so it consists of shells with empty space between them. The result is a light porous rock with a texture like that of a granola bar. The stone was quarried on nearby Anastasia Island.
photo of the day-building stones
They were made out of water stuff, shells and rocks.
Jacob,Florida
6yrs
Photo of the day
They're cut from Coral.
Post new comment