Why do we have five fingers on each hand and five toes on each foot?
We seem to have the exactly the right number to do the job – but why 5 fingers and five toes on each appendage – Why not 6 or 10 on each ? In this article we look at what is believed to be the reason it is “just so”.
How do Caterpillars turn into Butterflies ?
As children, many of us learn about the wondrous process by which a caterpillar morphs into a butterfly. The story usually begins with a very hungry caterpillar hatching from an egg. But what does that radical transformation entail?
Beating the Bankers at their Own Game – the Guernsey Way
In 1815 Guernsey was a desperate place. Impoverished and poor. BUT she had at that time among their leaders some honest men of keen intellect, who were willing to put forward some revolutionary suggestions and to embark upon a monetary experiment that transformed the community into an active prosperous and happy place to be in a very short time.
Why do things burn?
Burning, technically known as combustion, is a chemical reaction where a substance combines with oxygen and releases energy in the form of heat and light, which we see as flames. The substance starts off in a higher energy state, and by combining with oxygen ends up in a lower energy state.
How do birds know when to migrate?
In the springtime we see migratory birds returning to us whilst in the Autumn we bid them farewell as they head for warmer southern climes. But how do they know when to leave our shores ? – and why do they bother to return again ?
The Meaning of Some Guernsey Surnames
There’s a rich variety of traditional Guernsey surnames. Surnames that have been in the island for generations and with which we are all very familiar but may never have given any thought as to what they might actually mean. In this article we look st some of them.
The Death of a Saint and the Start of a Romantic Tradition – The Martyrdom of St Valentine
Monday 14th 270 AD was quite a day for Bishop Valentine of Interamna (now Terni in Umbria), for on that day, in Rome, he was stoned to death and then beheaded on the orders of Emperor Claudius II Gothicus.
Bet you can’t say that in English – Some Untranslatable Words From Around The World
Thanks to the British Empire and laterly the rise of the American hegemony English is pretty much THE World language. By some estimates the English language has more than a million words and it’s generally agreed that no other language has nearly as many. So you would think that English must have a word for everything, right? No – Not even close. In this article we look at some words in other languages that just seem to defy...
The Vocabulary of Winter – 8 Unusual Wintry Words
Having a wide vocabulary is always a good thing. In this article we’ve pulled together some of the more unusual words that the English language has to offer us that relate to wintertime.
Why do Boomerangs come back?
Boomerangs are commonly thought to be the invention of Aboriginal Australians but over the years they have turned up at archaeological sites as far apart as Arizona and India with the oldest known specimen, around 23,000 years old, but how do they fly ?
So Why do the British Traditionally Eat Turkey at Christmas ?
Christmas is probably the time of year when there is an overwhelming plethora of traditions and practices that we all enthusiastically embrace. In this article we look at one of the most enduring of British traditions … the Christmas Turkey.
The Meaning of 12 Days of Christmas Carol
There’s one particular Christmas Carol that continues to baffle people – “The Twleve days of Christmas”. What in the world do ‘leaping lords’, ‘French hens’,’swimming-swans’ and especially the partridge who won’t come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas?
Some Christmas Tree Factoids
Today the Christmas Tree is a pretty ubiquitous symbol of the yuletide season. It wasn’t always so. In this article we look at a few historical Christmas Tree factoids.
What Does Yule Really Mean?
Christmas is traditionally also known as “Yuletide”. Indeed the lyric from “Deck the Halls” goes “Troll the ancient yuletide carol.” Amidst all the fa-la-la-ing, did you ever ask yourself exactly what yuletide is?
The Christmas Tree
The Christmas tree is a ubiquitous image of the season. Trees were a symbol of life long before Christianity. In this article we look at a very short history of the Christmas tree.
