How many spots does a cheetah have and how is ear wax made? Try our kids’ quiz

1. Indie, 10, asks: how many spots does a cheetah have?

   1. Between 100 and 300

   2. Between 300 and 700

   3. Between 1,000 and 2,000

   4. Between 2,000 and 3,000

2. Luke, 10, asks: where is the oldest tree in the world?

   1. In the Amazon rainforest

   2. In California, US

   3. In Almaty, Kazakhstan

   4. In the Brecon Beacons in Wales

3. Aine, 7, asks: why do female spiders eat male spiders?

   1. To give the female spider extra nutrition after they’ve mated

   2. Because spiders live in matriarchal societies

   3. They do it as self-defence when a male spider attacks a female spider

   4. When they’re super annoyed with the male

4. Ben, 11, asks: how is ear wax made?

   1. By tiny goblins inside your ear

   2. It’s made of all the dirt that falls into your ear

   3. It’s made by glands in the ear canals and is mixed up with layers of dead skin and hair

   4. It’s made by your nose and slips into your ears

5. Jocelyn, 5, asks: how does a windmill turn in the wind?

   1. The windmill uses ropes and cables to convert energy from the wind to make the sails turn

   2. The wind pushes the sails or blades round

   3. A hamster inside runs round and round to turn the sails when it’s windy

   4. Ropes and cables are moved up and down to turn the sails

Solutions

1:D - Cheetahs have between 2,000 and 3,000 spots! Each cheetah has a unique spot pattern, just like our fingerprints., 2:B - Methuselah is a Great Basin bristlecone pine tree in the White Mountains in California. It’s the oldest named tree in the world, and is more than 4,850 years old, but there’s one growing nearby with no name that is slightly older – more than 5,070 years old., 3:A - In some species, after a male and female spider have mated, the female spider will eat the male, and scientists believe this is so that she can gain extra nutrition for her eggs. Yum!, 4:C - Ear wax, or cerumen, is made by glands in your ear canals and mixes with dead skin and hair. It keeps your ears healthy. Don’t try to get rid of it with cotton buds as you can push it into your ear canal, which is dangerous., 5:B - When it’s windy, the force of the wind blows against the sails or blades of a windmill and turns them, so the power of the wind is harnessed. Today, wind turbines that turn in the same way are used to convert wind energy into electricity.

Scores

1. 5 and above.

2. 4 and above.

3. 3 and above.

4. 2 and above.

5. 0 and above.

6. 1 and above.

Molly Oldfield hosts Everything Under the Sun, a weekly podcast answering children’s questions, out now as a book.

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