What is a praying mantis? Detailed answer

BIG ENCYCLOPEDIA FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS
Free library / Directory / Big encyclopedia for children and adults

What is a praying mantis? Detailed answer

Big encyclopedia for children and adults

Directory / Big encyclopedia. Questions for quiz and self-education

Did you know?

What is a praying mantis?

One of the most interesting insects in the world is the mantis. Sometimes people call him a "soothsayer" or a "mule killer". The last nickname comes from the belief that the saliva of this insect can poison the mule. The praying mantis is an insect with a long and narrow body, and when it is motionless, its large front legs are raised and folded, as if in prayer. But the praying mantis at this time does not pray at all, but ... hunts.

The praying mantis is indeed one of the most bloodthirsty creatures and could well be called a killer or a cannibal. The praying mantis lives by feeding on other insects. During the hunt, he sits motionless, putting out his front paw, like a trap, in constant readiness to grab any passing insect.

It is because of the need to be constantly ready for an attack that the front legs of the praying mantis are raised up. Sharp notches located on the inner parts of the front paws help him to keep the prey. The praying mantis moves on four hind legs or flies from place to place.

By the way, the praying mantis is the only insect that can turn its head back and look over its shoulder. Seeing a gaping fly, the praying mantis catches it with a throw of its front paws and, holding the victim with them, slowly begins to eat it. The praying mantis family has about 800 varieties. These are mainly insects with brown or green wings up to 5 cm long.

Author: Likum A.

Random interesting fact from the Great Encyclopedia:

How can you count calories?

Nowadays, millions of people are watching their weight, because they understand that in most cases, being overweight is harmful to health. Therefore, they relentlessly "count calories." This means that they figure out how many calories are in different types of food and try to eat high-calorie foods as little as possible. Of course, adherence to all diets and "counting calories" should be carried out under the supervision of a physician. But what does calories have to do with weight and health?

Let's look at what a calorie is. If two identical pots of water are placed on the same fire on the stove, the water in the pot with less water will reach the boiling point of the first one. Although the water in both pots boils at the same temperature, the pot with less water needs less heat than the pot with more water to bring the water to a boil. The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius is called a gram-calorie. A kilocalorie is a thousand times the unit of heat.

Where does this warmth come from? It appears as a result of the combustion of a particular fuel. In the kitchen, for example, we use gas as fuel. Our body uses food as "fuel", burning it in order to function normally. If we want to measure our food as "fuel", we do it in calories, which is a measure of heat. The energy value of food is usually measured in kilocalories. Different foods contain different amounts of calories. For example, one gram of protein contains four calories. And in one gram of fat - as many as nine calories! The human body does not care where to get its calories from, as long as they are enough for normal functioning.

How much does the body need? It is estimated that the average adult needs between two and three thousand calories per day. But a lot depends on what the person is doing. A housewife needs only two and a half thousand calories, a factory worker needs three to four thousand, and an athlete needs four thousand or more. What happens if a person receives more calories than the body needs? Food does not burn, but instead turns into fat. And that is why many people now, under the supervision of a doctor, "count calories."

Test your knowledge! Did you know...

▪ What struck Winston Churchill in the Moscow hotel?

▪ When did a simple pencil appear?

▪ How did hedgehogs shape McDonald's ice cream cups?

See other articles Section Big encyclopedia. Questions for quiz and self-education.

Read and write useful comments on this article.

<< Back

Latest news of science and technology, new electronics:

Machine for thinning flowers in gardens 02.05.2024

In modern agriculture, technological progress is developing aimed at increasing the efficiency of plant care processes. The innovative Florix flower thinning machine was presented in Italy, designed to optimize the harvesting stage. This tool is equipped with mobile arms, allowing it to be easily adapted to the needs of the garden. The operator can adjust the speed of the thin wires by controlling them from the tractor cab using a joystick. This approach significantly increases the efficiency of the flower thinning process, providing the possibility of individual adjustment to the specific conditions of the garden, as well as the variety and type of fruit grown in it. After testing the Florix machine for two years on various types of fruit, the results were very encouraging. Farmers such as Filiberto Montanari, who has used a Florix machine for several years, have reported a significant reduction in the time and labor required to thin flowers. ... >>

Advanced Infrared Microscope 02.05.2024

Microscopes play an important role in scientific research, allowing scientists to delve into structures and processes invisible to the eye. However, various microscopy methods have their limitations, and among them was the limitation of resolution when using the infrared range. But the latest achievements of Japanese researchers from the University of Tokyo open up new prospects for studying the microworld. Scientists from the University of Tokyo have unveiled a new microscope that will revolutionize the capabilities of infrared microscopy. This advanced instrument allows you to see the internal structures of living bacteria with amazing clarity on the nanometer scale. Typically, mid-infrared microscopes are limited by low resolution, but the latest development from Japanese researchers overcomes these limitations. According to scientists, the developed microscope allows creating images with a resolution of up to 120 nanometers, which is 30 times higher than the resolution of traditional microscopes. ... >>

Air trap for insects 01.05.2024

Agriculture is one of the key sectors of the economy, and pest control is an integral part of this process. A team of scientists from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Potato Research Institute (ICAR-CPRI), Shimla, has come up with an innovative solution to this problem - a wind-powered insect air trap. This device addresses the shortcomings of traditional pest control methods by providing real-time insect population data. The trap is powered entirely by wind energy, making it an environmentally friendly solution that requires no power. Its unique design allows monitoring of both harmful and beneficial insects, providing a complete overview of the population in any agricultural area. “By assessing target pests at the right time, we can take necessary measures to control both pests and diseases,” says Kapil ... >>

Random news from the Archive

New source of cosmic rays 31.10.2012

Researchers from the CNRS (French National Center for Scientific Research) and CEA have discovered a new source of cosmic rays while working with the European astronomical X-ray satellite XMM-Newton. It is located in close proximity to the Arches Star Cluster, not far from the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

Particles of this radiation are accelerated in a shock wave generated by tens of thousands of young Arch stars moving in roughly the same direction at about 700000 km/h. These cosmic rays, interacting with the atoms of the surrounding gas, produce characteristic X-rays. But the origin of these cosmic rays is different from the usual radiation that arises from supernova explosions. It was discovered exactly one hundred years ago by the Austrian physicist Victor Franz Hess. He discovered the existence of ionizing radiation of extraterrestrial origin, which he called cosmic rays. Modern astrophysicists understand their nature very well - when some stars explode and become supernovae at the end of their lives, their matter is ejected at supersonic speed, creating shock waves that accelerate particles. As a result, some atomic nuclei receive very high kinetic energy and enter the Earth's atmosphere.

However, low-energy cosmic rays have not been detected in the region of our planet, as the solar wind prevents them from entering the atmosphere. Therefore, little is known about their chemical composition, since their flow mainly passes outside the solar system. Although everything suggests that they play an important role in the galaxy. For example, the formation of new stars is likely to depend on ionizing and hot dense interstellar clouds.

The authors of the article began by studying X-rays, which theoretically should generate low-energy cosmic rays in the interstellar medium. They then looked for signs of this emission in X-ray data collected by the XMM-Newton telescope over more than a decade of operation.

By analyzing the X-ray properties of interstellar iron from satellite records, they found traces of large, fast-moving ion populations. They come from the vicinity of the Arches star cluster, located at a distance of about a hundred light-years from the center of our Milky Way galaxy. In all likelihood, they occur when the stars of the Arch at high speed collide with a gas cloud on their way. In this particular region, the energy density of accelerated ions is thousands of times greater than that of cosmic rays in the vicinity of the solar system.

This is the first time that a major source of low-energy cosmic rays has been discovered outside the solar system. Everything points to the fact that gas and dust clouds, and not only shock waves of supernovae, as was thought until now, can give high speeds to ions.

Other interesting news:

▪ New blood groups discovered

▪ Smart bed with anti-snoring mechanism

▪ Free electricity and clean water

▪ Soda flavor

▪ New material will protect surfaces from icing

News feed of science and technology, new electronics

Interesting materials of the Free Technical Library:

▪ section of the site Personal transport: land, water, air. Article selection

▪ article Veseliye Rusi eat piti. Popular expression

▪ article Who Invented Paper? Detailed answer

▪ Smolevka article. Legends, cultivation, methods of application

▪ article Permissible continuous current for cables with aluminum conductors with rubber or plastic insulation. Encyclopedia of radio electronics and electrical engineering

▪ article Through the lace. Focus Secret

Leave your comment on this article:

All languages of this page

Home page | Library | Articles | Website map | Site Reviews