With the kids home for a solid week (that would be 9 days, including the weekends. Yes, I was counting) the questions were coming fast and furious. God Bless teachers because they have to answer these questions all day long!
The small sampling:
Worm Burner (8): “How does that work?” *points to old fashioned scale serving as decor at a restaurant*
Mom’s answer: Well, it has a spring below the flat part that you stand on. The spring deflects and the force you put on it, or your weight, is proportional to the amount that the spring squishes.
Worm Burner: I mean how does it move the dial?
Dad’s answer: There’s a mechanical linkage, or lever, between the pad on the bottom and the dial on the top.
Worm Burner: Cool!
OK, so clearly Worm Burner is going for the mechanical coolness over science nerdiness. Sigh.
Dark Omen (11): In World War II, was Brazil on the side of the Axis or Allies?
Mom’s answer: I think Brazil was on the side of the Axis, because a high profile Nazi (Mengele) fled there at the end of the war, when it looked like they were going to lose, before they could get caught by the Allies. *inwardly thinks about The Boys from Brazil and can’t remember which part was fact and which part fiction*
Dad’s answer: I don’t think Brazil wasn’t allied with anyone. They didn’t have a strategic interest in the war.
Dark Omen’s Answer: Well, in my Axis and Allies game, they have 2 IPCs (International Production Credits, a unit of measure of worth in the game), so they must have done something. The rest of South America was neutral.
Mom and Dad: *stunned silence*
So naturally we googled it. Turns out Brazilian dictators were friendly with the Axis powers until economic pressure forced them to side with the Allies. At one point they actually hunted German subs and sent troops into combat. At the end of the war, Mengele, Eichmann, and possibly others fled to South America (as well as other haven countries), including Brazil.
Huh. Learn something new every day. And from the kids, no less.
The kids are safely back in school now, tormenting their teachers with their endless barrage of questions. I am wondering how much writing I can cram in before summer hits, with its temperate weather and endless time for pondering.
Smart kids! I'll never forget the day my daughter came home from school (in the fifth grade last year) and asked for help with her Math homewrork. I took one look and *gasp* I had no idea how to help. It's only gotten worse (she's a 6th grader now and doing algebra that I didn't do until I was in high school. And, like I remember it!)
I think most parents get to that point! (our kids are going to have to work hard to outpace us, but I'm sure that day is coming) This is why it's so important to have homework centers and great teachers! And uncles, and grandparents, that can help with the wild math homework.
Yeah, I could have told you Brasil was part of the Allies, not because I was born there or anything, but b/c if Germany or Japan occupied Brasil to start A&A, it'd be a lot easier to win as the Axis 🙂
Tell WB to go w/ the science — avoid mechanics.
Bane – You and Dark Omen would get along just fine. 🙂 And WB has a mind of his own – I just try to keep up!
I checked out Saludos Amigos and the Trhee Caballeros dvd's from the library and thought it odd that Disney would make feature-length cartoons about South America back in the '40's. Turns out the governent sent Disney as a goodwill gesture because they were concerned that South American countires would ally themselves with the Axis and also because the Axis shut off a lot of natural resources to the US. Disney needed the money at the time and the US needed South America, so the goverment sent a team of Disney artists for an extended stay. The result was those two movies. The Mouse may have kept Brasil from joining the Nazis!
@Carl – Wow. How cool is that? I knew the Mouse rocked, but I never suspected Agent Mousie! Dark Omen will think that's awesome.
Another cool factoid, for listeners at home: Brasilians spell their country's name with an "s" because in Portuguese (the native tongue), the "s" sounds like a "z". Most of the world spells it Brazil, using the English spelling, which uses the letter "z" for the "z" sound.
Fascinating, I know.