The Saturday briefing
IS THERE anything you are desperately yearning to know? Are there any pressing factual disputes you would like us to help resolve? This is the page where we shall do our best to answer any questions you throw at us, whatever the subject.
WHY, when breeds of dogs mate with each other to get mongrels and mixtures such as cockapoos, and with cats also good at crossbreeding, are there no mixtures of garden birds? No rob-tits or spar-finches?
Adrienne Bradley, Glasgow (and coincidentally a very similar question was emailed by Brian Routledge) IT’S all a question of evolution really. Different breeds of dogs and cats have mostly been engineered by people over the past few hundred years. Species of birds have been developing over millions of years.
In that time birds have grown further apart while dogs are all dogs and can mate with each other as can cats with other cats, while birds have become unable to mate with different birds.
That’s the difference between the definitions of “breeds” and “species”. An animal can mate with any breed in its own species; if they can’t mate, then they are said to be of different species.
EVERY weather vane I have ever seen has the arrowhead pointing in the direction from which the wind is coming, this is understandable. Why then on all TV weather charts does the arrowhead point in the direction the wind is blowing?
Bruce Wray, Northamptonshire IT does seem a little odd that weather vanes and weather forecast arrows point in opposite directions but there is a sort of logic behind it. Weather vanes were designed for meteorologists who were interested in where the wind was coming from. A north wind blows from north to south so the weather vane points north.
People looking at weather maps are more interested in knowing where the wind is going, so the arrow points that way. WE know that during a jousting event Henry VIII was seriously hurt and nearly died. Do we know who his opponent was and did anything happen to him as a result of his beating the King?
Geoff Bell, Campbeltown, Argyll HENRY VIII’s jousting accident in 1536 is shrouded in mystery. The incident is mentioned in only three known sources, all letters from people who probably didn’t see it themselves. The name of his jousting opponent is not given and it’s not even clear that the King was jousting at the time.
All that is said is that he fell from his horse which then also fell and landed on the King, which considering the fact that jousting horses were usually in full armour sounds a pretty horrific accident.
One account says the King was unconscious for two hours and some now say the accident was responsible for a change in the King’s personality, his viciousness and huge weight gain. There seems to be more information about his earlier jousting accident in 1524 but again the name of his opponent is not mentioned, although it is said that the King’s cheek was pierced by the opponent’s lance just below his eye. But Henry walked away from it and laughed it off.
WHY do we use the phrase “kicking over the traces”? Aren’t traces part of a horse’s harness?
QUITE right. Traces are the straps that run along a horse’s sides to connect it to a carriage.
An overexcited horse may kick its leg above the traces, which can result in a terrible tangle, losing control of the carriage.
When applied to humans, “kicking over the traces” is similarly used to describe a loss of control caused by disdaining the rules or being insubordinate or reckless. With humans, kicking over the traces is deliberate; with horses it’s a bad-tempered accident.
I AM intrigued by three statistical questions: how much oxygen is consumed by the breathing of all life-forms? How much oxygen is consumed by the internal combustion engine? And at what rate is oxygen naturally replenished?
As I am sure you have guessed, my concern is that when the sum of the first two overtakes the third, we
Paul Frank leopard print satchel, £39.99. 0345 640 2020/argos.co.uk Made from splash-proof and waterproof PVC this stylish satchel covered with a leopard print is perfect for school, although trendy parents may well try to pinch it. With several pockets including one for a phone, it is large enough for A4 files. Kate Ladd, Ayr by
are in trouble. When will that point be reached?
THE three largest consumers of oxygen are breathing by animals (around 230 billion tons a year), oxidation by microbes (51 billion tons) and human use of fuels (12 billion tons). The total amount of oxygen used in a year is about 300 billion tons.
The total amount produced has been estimated as 165 billion tons from the land through photosynthesis (using the sun’s energy to liberate oxygen from carbon dioxide) and 135 billion tons from the oceans (including a vast amount from seaweed), which adds up to 300 billion tons. The total amount of oxygen in the atmosphere is about 5,000 times as much so it’s fair to say we’re safe for a few thousand years. Is there anything you can’t answer? Try us! You can ask a question:
By email: put “questions” in the subject line and send your question to william.hartston@express.co.uk
to Any Questions, c/o William Hartston, Daily Express, Number 10 Lower Thames Street, London EC3R 6EN
By post:
We cannot promise replies to everyone but the best will feature on this page.
inaccurate please go to www.express.co.uk/contactus where you will find an easy to use form. Alternatively you can write to Readers Editor, Daily Express, 10 Lower Thames Street, London EC3R 6EN. We will do our best to correct it as soon as possible.
If you have a complaint concerning a breach of the Code please go Ken Watson, Belfast
ANIMAL MAGIC
to www.express.co.uk/contactus where you will find our complaints policy and procedure. Alternatively, once you have established that your complaint falls within the complaints procedure, you can put your complaint in writing to Complaints, Daily Express, 10 Lower Thames Street, London EC3R 6EN.