Reading: Where Do Snakes Get Their Venom?

       Scientists think there are about two thousand four hundred different kinds of snakes now living. Of these, only about 8 percent are poisonous kinds that stun or kill their prey with venom. In many poisonous snakes the venom is not strong enough or plentiful enough to be dangerous to man. 
       All snakes have a large amount of saliva that helps them swallow and digest prey. In the venomous snakes one of the saliva glands pro¬duces a substance that is poisonous to the snakes’ prey. This sub¬stance is the snakes’ venom. 
       Some snakes have venom that is strong enough to kill an ele¬phant. Others have venom so mild that they can kill only small lizards. Probably only two hundred species of venomous snakes can be considered dangerous to man. 
       Among the venomous species of snakes known, the cobras and their relatives make up one family; the vipers, a second. And there are some venomous snakes among a kind known as the colubrids, the largest family of snakes. 
       The cobras and their relatives have fangs at the front of the mouth, one on each side of the upper jaw. The fangs are grooved, but in most cobras the groove is closed over, forming a hollow tube. A muscle surrounds the venom gland. When the snake bites, the muscle presses on the gland. This forces the venom down into the fang and out through the fang tip directly into the prey. 
       There is a spitting cobra that can spray venom from its fangs. The cobra aims at the eyes of a threatening animal, such as an an¬telope or buffalo. The spray reaches about eight feel and causes al¬most instant blindness. 
       In general, cobra venom affects the nervous system of the victim and makes him unable to move. When the venom reaches the nerve centers that control breathing or heartbeat, the victim dies. Vipers have very long fangs. Their venom affects mainly the blood cells and blood vessels of the victims. It may cause great swelling and bleeding. 

Source: Lots More Tell Me Why by Arkady Leokum 

In English and Spanish: Collocations with Words that Can Help Identify a Person.

Source: Cambridge Word Selector.

Palabras o expresiones que pueden ayudar a identificar una persona. 

In Engish and Spanish: Words to Describe Thin People.

Source: Cambridge Word Selector.

Palabras en inglés y en español para describir gente delgada o flaca. 

Reading: What is Lace?

   Lace is an airy and delicate fabric made of fine threads stitched into patterns. Lace is used to add beauty to many of the things we wear and use. It may be made by hand or by machine.
   The first true hand-made lace was probably made in Italy in the middle of the 1500’s. Very soon afterward, laces were being made in France. Today hand-made lace is made chiefly in Italy and Belgium. Machine-made lace is produced in England. France, and the United States.
   Hand-made lace is usually made by one of two methods: needle-point or bobbin. Needlepoint lace is made by drawing the design on a thick piece of paper backed by linen. The outline of the pattern is stitched onto the paper. The stitching is used as a framework on which the lacemaker works with a needle and single thread, building up the pattern with looped stitches. When the work is completed, the framework stitches are clipped and the lace is lifted off the pattern.
   Bobbin lace is made with a large number of threads, each fastened to a bobbin (spool). The pattern is drawn on paper, and the paper is fastened onto a cushion. Then pins are stuck into the cushion to keep the threads in position while the lace is being made. The lace is made with a pair of bobbins in each hand. These are moved from side to side to twist or interlace the threads. As the work progresses, the pins are moved farther along.
   Chantilly lace is a bobbin lace that has vine or spray patterns on a mesh ground; it is often used on evening dresses and bridal veils. Cluny lace is a fairly coarse bobbin lace; it is often used to trim chil-dren’s dresses and household linens.

Source: Lots More Tell Me Why by Arkady Leokum 

In English and Spanish: Talking about people who have gained weight.

Corpulent; a corpulent gentleman.

Source: Cambridge Word Selector,

In English and in Spanish: Cosas amontonadas.

Source: Cambridge Word Selector.

Spanish-English: palabras que indican en inglés Brillar con luz intermitente.

glitter vi Icon una luz fuerte y brillante que viene He distintos puntosl relucir, brillar The lake glittered in the sunshine. El lago resplandecfa bajo el sol Jcuando se aplica a los ojos implica un sentimiento hostil o maliciosol Her eyes glittered with resentment. Sus ojos brillaban He resenlimienio. flash vi Icon una luz brillante v repentinal destellar She flashed her headlights at him. Le dio las luces (largas). flash sn destello glimmer vi Icon una luz inestable y suave I brillar con luz tremula His torch glimmered at the end of the tunnel La luz de su linterna brillaba tremula al final del tunel. glimmer sn luz tremula

shimmer vi Iron una lu/ retlejada, inestable y suave. Norml. se utiliza en contcxtos apreciativos] relucir Her silk dress shimmered as she walked Su vestido de seda relucia al caminar. twinkle w Ibrillar intermitentemente. Free, implica alegria] centellear Stars twinkled in the sky. Las estrellas centelleaban en el < ielo. His eves twinkled with mirth. Sus ojos brillaban de jubilo.

sparkle vi centellear, destellar Her eyes sparkled with delight. Le brillaban los ojos de regocijo. sparkling wine vino espumoso

Soure: Cambridge  Word Selector

READING: : Do Insects Have Blood?

As we look at living creatures much smaller than ourselves, many of us imagine that they must lack the organs and functions that we have. How can something as tiny as an insect have a heart? How can it have a circulatory system and blood in its tiny body? But the miracle of life is not only that these creatures have organs, but that these organs are perfect for each insect’s way of life. Adult insects have bodies with three sections: head, thorax, and abdomen. The head has a pair of antennae in front that are feelers, and that usually have some tiny organs of smell. The eyes and mouth are part of the head, too.

Not only docs an insect have a heart, but it also has blood and a circulatory system. The blood passes into the heart by means of holes equipped with valves. When the heart contracts, these holes close, and the blood is driven out through the arteries. Insects don’t have a system of capillaries and veins as we do. The reason their circulatory system is not greatly developed is that they don’t depend on the circulation of the blood for their supply of oxygen. In our bodies, as you know, the blood carries oxygen to every part and enables it to function. But insects have a different system of breathing. They have tiny branching tubes that end in little air holes in the sides of the body. The air comes in right from the surface of the body and goes directly to the cells.

A more complicated system would be too much for their size. On the other hand, a simple system like theirs wouldn’t be enough for larger animals. It’s not too bad a system, though, considering that more than half of all living animals have it! Did you know that one name for an insect is hexapod? The term is from two Greek words meaning “six” and “foot.” If you count the feet of an insect, you can sec why hexapod is a good way to describe most insects. The legs are usually in three pairs, and are attached to the thorax. There are thousands and thousands of different species of insects, among them some of man’s best friends as well as some of his worst enemies. Source: Lot More Tell Me Why by Leokum, Arkady; Koehler, Cynthia Iliff, ill; Koehler, Alvin, ill