The Saturday briefing
Is there anything you’re yearning to know? Send your questions, on any subject, to the contacts given below, and we will do our best to answer them...
Q AWhy are all the planets round and not square or oblong?
Planets are thought to have taken shape after material floating around in space bumped together to form clumps.And objects tend to become spheres if they are massive enough.
Gravity pulls all the planet’s material towards its centre from the edges – imagine a bicycle wheel and its spokes.
But some planets in our solar system are more round than others due to their rotation and larger size – they get something called an equatorial bulge.
Earth has a bulge of about 27 miles – its diameter measured across the equator is almost 27 miles more than when measured pole to pole.
But Saturn has the biggest bulge, measuring more than 7,000 miles.
THE CIRCLE OF LIFE: Earth is not perfectly spherical but bulges around the middle like most other planets
Mercury and Venus, the smallest planets in our solar system, are almost perfect spheres.
Smaller objects in space, such as asteroids and comets, have less gravity so tend to be random and imperfect shapes as there is not enough pull to smooth them out.
QIs it true chewing gum was invented by the Mexican general who captured the Alamo?
AWe have been mindlessly chewing since the Stone Age, but mostly on tree sap and bark. The Mayans, 3,500 years ago, chewed chicle – a natural gum from the Mexican sapodilla tree. It produces this sticky, tasteless substance to protect itself from insects and to heal itself. Usefully, it contains water droplets so chewing it could keep thirst at bay on long hunts.
Mexican general Santa Anna, who served as president 12 times, did play a part in getting gum to stick around. He chewed chicle to calm his nerves while leading the Mexican army to victory at the Alamo in 1836, eventually crushing the Texan rebels.
This controversial figure was exiled several times and found himself in Staten Island, trying to raise money to head home and stage a coup.There, in the 1850s, he met scientist Thomas Adams, and suggested cashing in on chicle by using it as a rubber substitute.
But after failed experiments with tyres and boots, he returned to his plotting, while Adams decided to add flavours and market the gum as it had been used for centuries, calling it Adams’ New York snapping and stretching gum.
Other wrapped sticks were around then, made from spruce tree gum, but Adams’ recipe was tastier and he went on to open the first chewing gum factory and work with William Wrigley.
Most chewing gum these days is made from a synthetic equivalent,which is also used to make inner tubes.
QWhere did crossing a baby’s palm with silver come from?
AThis has been going on for centuries and it is thought to have its roots in the story of the birth of Christ and the three wise men offering gold. So babies get a precious metal at their christening, but not up to the son of God level.
In 1551, the silver sixpence was introduced during the reign of King EdwardVI and became a symbol of prosperity – and also a practical gift for the family.
There are many other traditions involving a lucky silver coin, including brides putting a silver sixpence in their shoe on their wedding day.
In China they have a traditional zhua zhou ceremony where parents put objects and toys in front of their child on their first birthday, and whatever the child is drawn to is supposed to predict their future. So if they grasp a coin, they should never have to worry about money. Grabbing Lego could point to them building a career as an engineer, a pen could mean they are the next JK Rowling and a ball could mean they will be a future Olympic star.
BERYL Morton has asked about a song her mother used to sing to her when she was a little girl in the 1940s.
A R B Saxe and Hubert W David (1926)
Down in a desolate garden, ’Midst all the weeds on the ground,
’Twas there in the gloom I found a sweet bloom, That was shedding its perfume all around.
Just a rose in a garden of weeds,
No one knows why they planted you there, Although you’re alone, how sweet you have grown, With no one to tend you or care.
Never mind little rose, never mind, Though you’re lonely and nobody heeds, When the night sheds its dew, it’s a tear shed for you, Just a rose in a garden of weeds.
If you can’t remember the words to a favourite verse or song from yesteryear, send us a snippet and we’ll do our best to find all the wonderful words.
PLEASE SEND US YOUR INTRIGUING QUESTIONS ON ANY SUBJECT: By email:
● put “questions” in the subject line and send to kay.harrison@reachplc.com
● to Any Questions, Daily Express, One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AP
●
Unfortunately we cannot reply individually, but we will feature the best questions on this page.