Wind Steady Sings

What does it mean to "steady sing"?
When was the first song recorded?
Has singing been around as long as humans have?
How has singing changed over the centuries?

Chores

What is a chore?

• job: a specific piece of work required to be done as a duty or for a specific fee; "estimates of the city's loss on that job ranged as high as a million dollars"; "the job of repairing the engine took several hours"; "the endless task of classifying the samples"; "the farmer's morning chores"
  wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
• chores - A small or minor job; a routine duty of a household or farm.
  www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3447200032.html

How does someone raise up a chore?
What is the difference between a household chore and the chore that's mentioned in the song?
When did the term "chore" come around?
What is another name for a chore?

Sops

What are sops?
How many meanings does the word "sop" have?

Skin Turns Green

Why would someone's skin turn green?

Praying

Why do we pray?
Do all religions have a form of prayer?
Is there a proper way to pray?
What is the definition of the word "pray"?
Was prayer around before organized religion was?

Sleep

What is sleep?
(http://www.talkaboutsleep.com/sleep-disorders/archives/intro.htm)

• Sleep is a physical and mental resting state in which a person becomes relatively inactive and unaware of the environment.
• sleep is a partial detachment from the world, where most external stimuli are blocked from the senses.
• Normal sleep is characterized by a general decrease in body temperature, blood pressure, breathing rate, and most other bodily functions

What happens to the body during sleep?
(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-90598/What-happens-body-youre-asleep.html)

• Sleep is the time the body can undergo repair and detoxification

                              BRAIN

• activity in the cortex - the surface of the brain - drops by about 40 per cent while we are in the first phases of sleep
• five different sleep cycles, each lasting about 90 minutes
• The first four stages of each cycle are regarded as quiet sleep or non-rapid eye move-ment (NREM). The final stage is denoted by rapid eye movement (REM)
• first stage: brain waves are small undulations
• second stage: waves intersperse with electrical signals called sleep spindles - small bursts of activity lasting a couple of seconds which keep us in a state of quiet readiness
• stage three: waves continue to deepen into large slow waves. The larger and slower the brain wave, the deeper the sleep
• stage four: reached when 50 per cent of the waves are slow. not taxed mentally and 40% of the blood flow usually reserved for the brain goes to the muscles.
• stage five (REM): there is a high level of brain activity, helps consolidate memory and emotion, as at this point in sleep blood flow rises sharply in several brain areas linked to processing memories and emotional experiences. In areas involving complex reasoning and language, blood flow declines

                            EYES

• the movement of the eyes denotes the different stages of sleep
• first falling into semi-consciousness, the eyes roll. But as we move into deeper sleep, rapid eye movement (REM) occurs when the eyes twitch and dart about
• REM occurs within about 90 minutes of falling asleep and recurs about every 90 minutes throughout the night. It denotes a time when most dreaming is done
• brain activity is high at this point, the muscles of the body are relaxed to a point of virtual paralysis

                            HORMONES

• Levels of adrenaline and corticosteroids drop and the body starts to produce human growth hormone (HGH).
• A protein hormone, HGH promotes the growth, maintenance and repair of muscles and bones by facilitating the use of amino acids (the essential building blocks of protein).
• Melatonin: Secreted by the pineal gland deep in the brain, it helps control body rhythms and sleep-wake cycles.
• It is mostly during sleep that the sex hormone testosterone and the fertility hormones, follicle-stimulating hormone and leuteinising hormone, are secreted.

                     IMMUNE SYSTEM

• A cancer killer called TNF - tumour necrosis factor - pumps through our veins when we are asleep

                    BODY TEMP

• body temperature, along with levels of wakeful hormones such as adrenaline, start to drop
• By about 5am temp has dropped to about one degree centigrade below the temperature it was in the evening
• Low body temperatures increase your likelihood of sleeping deeply and so give the body chance to rest and rebuild. As body temperature starts to rise, it remains more difficult to stay in a deep sleep

                        MUSCLES

• Though a person can change their sleeping position about 35 times a night, the muscles of the body remain relaxed. This gives the chance for tissues to be repaired and restored.
• However, studies indicate that muscles might receive just as much relaxation and repair during simple rest periods and that a state of unconsciousness is not needed for this to take place.

(for more check the website, BUNCH of info)
Do animals sleep?
(http://www.sleepfoundation.org/article/how-sleep-works/animals-sleep-there-human-connection)

• "[Mammals] all have the same fundamental sleep cycle," says Adrian Morrison, DVM, PhD, professor of Behavior Neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary Center. "During REM sleep, you see the same kind of eye movement, paralysis and twitching across species."
• Scientists still don't know—and probably never will—if animals dream during REM sleep, as humans do. "How can you prove that another person has dreams? You ask them," says Siegel.
• Sleep schedules also greatly vary from animal to animal. Siegel proposes that these differences are based on the brain metabolism rate of the animal. Smaller animals, who often have higher rates of brain metabolism, tend to require more sleep, while larger animals generally get less sleep
• Unihemispheral sleep in birds and dolphins—where one side of the brain remains awake in sleep—may provide new clues into the human brain

(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bookshelf/br.fcgi?book=neurosci&part=A1951)

• sleep is evidently necessary for survival. For instance, rats completely deprived of sleep die in a few weeks

What're the differences between sleep and wakefulness in the body?
(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-90598/What-happens-body-youre-asleep.html)
                                                       HORMONES

• waking hours: the body burns oxygen and food to provide energy. This is known as a catabolic state, (more energy is spent than conserved), using up the body's resources.
• waking state is dominated by the work of stimulating hormones (adrenaline and natural cortisteroids). However, when we sleep we move into an anabolic state (energy conservation, repair and growth take over)
• Every tissue in the body is renewed faster during sleep than at any time when awake.
• Levels of melatonin rise as the body temperature falls, to encourage feelings of sleepiness. The opposite occurs to wake us up.

                            IMMUNE SYSTEM

• immune system's increased production of certain proteins during sleep, as the levels of certain agents which fight disease rise during sleep and drop when we are awake.

(http://www.talkaboutsleep.com/sleep-disorders/archives/intro.htm)
                          BRAIN

• the human brain never decreases inactivity. Studies have shown that the brain is as active during sleep as it is when awake

(http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/brain_basics/understanding_sleep.htm)

• Nerve-signaling chemicals called neurotransmitters control whether we are asleep or awake by acting on different groups of nerve cells, or neurons, in the brain.
• Neurons in the brainstem, which connects the brain with the spinal cord, produce neurotransmitters such as serotonin and norepinephrine that keep some parts of the brain active while we are awake.
• Other neurons at the base of the brain begin signaling when we fall asleep

• During stage 1, which is light sleep, Our eyes move very slowly and muscle activity slows.
• People awakened from stage 1 sleep often remember fragmented visual images.
• Many also experience sudden muscle contractions called hypnic myoclonia, often preceded by a sensation of starting to fall. These sudden movements are similar to the "jump" we make when startled
• stage 2 sleep, our eye movements stop and our brain waves (fluctuations of electrical activity that can be measured by electrodes) become slower, with occasional bursts of rapid waves called sleep spindles.
• In stage 3, extremely slow brain waves called delta waves begin to appear, interspersed with smaller, faster waves.
• By stage 4, the brain produces delta waves almost exclusively. It is very difficult to wake someone during stages 3 and 4, which together are called deep sleep. There is no eye movement or muscle activity

               (http://kidshealth.org/kid/htbw/muscles.html)
                            MUSCLES

• You have three different types of muscles in your body: smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, and skeletal muscle.
• SMOOTH: also called involuntary muscles — are usually in sheets, or layers, with one layer of muscle behind the other
• can't control smooth muscles
• bladder, behind eyes, uterus, etc
• CARDIAC: muscle that makes up the heart
• heart contract to pump blood out and then relax to let blood back in after it has circulated through the body
• like smooth muscle, cardiac muscle works all by itself with no help from you
• SKELETAL: sometimes called striated muscle
• voluntary muscles
•  the skeletal muscles work with your bones to give your body power and strength. In most cases, a skeletal muscle is attached to one end of a bone. It stretches all the way across a joint (the place where two bones meet) and then attaches again to another bone
• muscles help keep you upright and standing tall. They also give your body the power it needs to lift and push things

                           EYES

• take in tons of information about the world around you — shapes, colors, movements, and more. Then they send the information to your brain for processing so the brain knows what's going on outside of your body
• blinking: both a voluntary and involuntary action, (you can blink whenever you want to, but also happens without you even thinking about it)
• step into bright light, the eyelids squeeze together tightly to protect your eyes until they can adjust to the light
• eyelids shut automatically to protect the eye from possible danger
• lacrimal glands, which make tears. Every time you blink your eye, a tiny bit of tear fluid comes out of your upper eyelid. 
• tears wash away germs, dust, or other particles that don't belong in your eye

(http://www.emc.maricopa.edu/faculty/farabee/BIOBK/BioBookMUSSKEL.html)

• Animals use their muscular and skeletal systems for support, locomotion, and maintaining their shape
• Rapid muscular contraction is important in generating internal heat, another homeostatic function.

(http://www.medicinenet.com/brain_tumor/article.htm)

• The brain directs the things we choose to do (like walking and talking) and the things our body does without thinking (like breathing). The brain is also in charge of our senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell), memory, emotions, and personality.
• Cerebrum- controls reading, thinking, learning, speech, and emotions
• Cerebellum - The cerebellum controls balance and complex actions like walking and talking.
• Brain Stem - It controls hunger and thirst. It also controls breathing, body temperature, blood pressure, and other basic body functions.
  

Is it necessary to sleep?
(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-90598/What-happens-body-youre-asleep.html)

• those who sleep less than six hours a night have a shorter life expectancy than those who sleep for longer
• Research suggests that sleeping more when fighting infectious illness aids recovery
• Getting enough sleep can also help resist infection, as some studies of healthy young adults have shown that moderate amounts of sleep deprivation reduce the levels of white blood cells which form part of the body's defence system.
• people who stayed up until 3am had one-third fewer cells containing TNF the next day, and that the effectiveness of those remaining was greatly reduced
• Ensuring regular periods of sleep at night lets the bodyclock regulate hormone production, so that you feel wakeful and alert during the day and ready to enjoy restorative sleep at night.

(http://www.talkaboutsleep.com/sleep-disorders/archives/intro.htm)

• Sleep is a necessary and vital biological function.
• It is essential to a person's physical and emotional well being.
• Studies have shown that without enough sleep, a person's ability to perform even simple tasks declines dramatically
• average sleep-deprived individual may experience impaired performance, irritability, lack of concentration, and daytime drowsiness
• less alert, attentive, and unable to concentrate effectively. Additionally, because sleep is linked to restorative processes in the immune system, sleep deprivation in a normal adult causes a biological response similar to the body fighting off an infection.

How long should a person sleep nightly?
(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-90598/What-happens-body-youre-asleep.html)

• We spend about one-third of our lives asleep

(http://www.talkaboutsleep.com/sleep-disorders/archives/intro.htm)

• Six to eight hours per day is the average amount of sleep a person needs. That's about one-third of a lifetime!
• As a population, we sleep about 1 to 1.5 hours less than we did 100 years ago.
• experts suggest that the best way to determine personal sleep requirements is by waking up without an alarm clock. The amount of time spent sleeping would be the personal requirement
• the amount of sleep a person needs does not decrease with age

Davy Jones' Locker

Who is Davy Jones?
Why does Davy Jones have a locker?
What kind of locker does he have?
Why is Davy Jones' locker a euphemism for death?
Did sailors create the notion of Davy Jones' locker?
Was Davy Jones a real man?
What did Davy Jones do?

Wishing Well

Why do we throw change into wishing wells?
Where does the money in a wishing well go?
When was the first wishing well created?
Who developed the wishing well procedure?
How many wishing wells are there world-wide?
Do wishing wells work?

The Plank

What is the purpose of a plank?
Are planks only on ships?
Why were people blindfolded and tied before "walking the plank"?
Are pirates the only people known to have made people walk the plank?
Are diving boards a recreational form of a plank?
Are people today still made to walk the plank?
When was the first plank created?
Why was the first plank created?
Who was the first pirate to use a plank?

See you in hell

When did this phrase come about?
Who was the first to say "see you in hell"?
How often does the phrase crop up in popular culture?
What are the connotations of the phrase?
When is this phrase most often said?

Mermaids

What is a mermaid?

• half woman and half fish; lives in the sea
  wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

(http://members.cox.net/mermaid31/merhist.htm)

• Under the strain of voyaging, sailors through the ages have seen in the ocean the embodiment of their deepest desires and fears
• On early maps the figure of the enchanting mermaid shared space with the hideous monsters and fearsome beasts who lay in wait for the explorers of unknown waters

(http://www.wellesley.edu/Psychology/Cheek/Narrative/myth.html)

• According to the Standard Dictionary of Folklore: Mythology and Legend, Merfolk (mermaids and mermen) are supernatural beings who live primarily beneath the sea.
• While the common conception of Merfolk is that they are humans from the waist up, but fishes from the waist down, according to myth that is simply not true. Instead, Merfolk are neither human nor fish, but they are mammals that resemble human/fish combinations.
• Mermaids are usually depicted as having scaly tails, however, many early descriptions of Merfolk mention their dolphin-like tails
• A carving on Puce Church in Gironde, France, shows a young mermaid with two tapering tails instead of legs

Who created the first tale about mermaids?
(http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/mythiccreatures/water/mermaids.php)

• in many cases, water spirits that weren't originally mermaids took on that form only after images of mermaids were introduced by outsiders.

(http://www.wellesley.edu/Psychology/Cheek/Narrative/myth.html)

• It is in Hellenic literature that one finds the first literary description of Merfolk

When was the first sighting of mermaids?
(http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/mythiccreatures/water/mermaids.php)

• 20TH-CENTURY SIGHTINGS
  Mermaid sightings were reported in Ireland as recently as 1910, when one was seen in County Clare. One local said that mermaids were a bad omen, as the last sighting in 1849 was followed by the great potato famine.

Where was the first sighting of mermaids?
What do mermaids symbolize in literature?
What animals are/were commonly mistaken for mermaids?
(http://content.class.com/ewew_content/oceans/03marine/0301ecology/0301_06.htm)

• Historically, these animals were mistaken for mermaids, half fish and half woman, even though they are mammals, not fish at all

What are some stories about mermaids?
(http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/mythiccreatures/water/mermaids.php)

• In European stories, mermaids were thought to be beautiful, seductive and dangerous—like the sea itself. They could bring good luck or bad. Ship figureheads were sometimes carved in the shape of mermaids. Some sailors also carved mermaids from walrus ivory and whale teeth, but many avoided carving mermaids, fearing they would bring bad luck.

(http://www.wellesley.edu/Psychology/Cheek/Narrative/myth.html)

•  Ovid writes that mermaids were born from the burning galleys of the Trojans where the timbers turned into the flesh and blood of the 'green daughters of the sea.'
• The Irish say that mermaids are old pagan women transformed and banished from the earth by St. Patrick.
• A Livonian folktale says they are the drowned children of an unknown Pharaoh - having met their doom in the depths of the Red Sea.

Watery Grave

What is a watery grave?
Are sailors the first to use this phrase?
How were funerals conducted on a ship at sea?
Where did the phrase originate?
Why don't we call being buried in the ground a "dirty grave"?

One Way Ticket

When were tickets first invented?
Who invented the ticket?
Why was the first ticket needed?
What are some of the reasons someone would use a one way ticket?
When did the phrase "one way ticket" appear?
Who coined the word "ticket"?
How long has the saying "that's the ticket" been around?

Bartender

When did the first bartender show up?
(http://www.bartendingschools.biz/history_of_bartending.htm)

• The history of bartending dates back to ancient times and can be found in Roman, Greek, and even Asian societies.
• Public drinking houses, as they were called in those times (now called PUBs in England), served as a place for people to socialize. 
• Before the 15th century, the majority of bartenders were alehouse owners and female innkeepers who brewed and produced their own liquor.
• (western europe) taverns were the heart of the social world for many professionals from investors to poets. 
• Bartenders and bar owners were considered members of the economic and social elite. 
• They owned property and were recognized as part of one of the wealthiest trades of all time. 

What was the original job description for bartenders?

Neptune

Who is Neptune?
                       (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• He is the god of the sea, horses, and of earthquakes
• Moody. When he was in a good mood the seas were calm and new lands were found. When he was cranky the seas reflected that
• He loved exerting his power over women and proving how masculine he was

                     (windows2universe.org)

• He was pictured as a bearded man riding a seashell chariot (drawn by horses) and holding a trident

                    (Mythography)

• Very popular god and therefore the subject of many myths and legends
• Legendary fighter and lover

                     (apana.org)

• A large part of neptune is his trident (created by the cyclopes) which he uses not only to stir up the winds and the sea, but to shake the earth as well
• A male spirit of fertility

Who created Neptune?
                    (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• The Romans; but when he came about he was basically just another version of the Greek Poseidon.

Where does Neptune live?
                     (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• At the bottom of the ocean in a palace made of gems and coral.

What are Neptune's powers?
                     (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• To create earthquakes, manipulate water and horses
• Would use his powers to inflict fear or punishment (however, he could be cooperative from time to time)

                     (About.com)

• Creative: he created all the sea creatures

                    (greece.org)

• He is the driving force behind every phenomenon on/underneath the sea (typhoons, earthquakes, volcanoes, etc)

Does Neptune have any family?
                     (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• One of 6 siblings (Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Zeus) in Greek mythology
• Children: Triton - half human and half fish (off a Nereid, Amphitrite), Chrysoar and Pegasus - flying horse (off a Gorgon, Medusa), (Aethra) Theseus, Eumolpus (the Giant Sinis), Polyphemus, Orion, King Amycus, Proteus, Agenor and Belus from Europa, Pelias, and the King of Egypt, Busiris.

                      (windows2universe.org)

• Neptune's brother's called Jupiter (Zeus) and Pluto (Hades) by the Romans

Is he called by any other names?
                     (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• Poseidon

                      (Nineplanets.org)

• Neptune

                     (Mythography)

• Earth Shaker

Who calls him those different names?
                    (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• Greeks (Poseidon): Poseidon is Greek for husband

                    (Nineplanets.org)

• Romans (Neptune)

                   (Mythography)

• Greeks (Earth Shaker): referred as such in Greek literature and poetry often

How do people pay reverence to Neptune?
                    (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• Sailors would sacrifice horses over the sides of their ships for the promise of a good voyage
• Neptune is much less loved by Roman sailors than Poseidon is by Greek sailors
• Neptune held in much higher regard as "Neptune Equester"

Why is there a planet named after him?
                      (windows2universe.org)

• Discovered in 1846, scientists had a trend of naming planets after Greek and Roman gods. So, they continued with the name Neptune

What symbols are associated with Neptune?
                      (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• Dolphins, tridents, three-pronged fish spears

What are some of the legends about him?
                      (Encyclopedia Mythica™ )

• Neptune and his brothers divided the world, Zeus got the sky, Hades the underworld, and Neptune the sea
• He lives in a palace made of gems and coral
• Drives a chariot pulled by horses
• When he struck the ground with his trident, earthquakes, shipwrecks and drownings occurred
• Because Poseidon is Greek for husband (possibly of wheat), it fits nicely that he had relations with Demeter (his sister) the goddess of wheat

                      (windows2universe.org)

• When setting about to marry Amphitrite, Neptune sent a dolphin to convince the woman he was a good match. Because the dolphin did so well, Neptune created Dolphinus (the constellation) as a reward

                      (About.com)

• He created the zebra

                     (Mythography)

• Neptune is written about in the works of Homer and of Hesiod

Thrown Over Board

Where did the phrase originate?
When did the phrase originate?
What does the phrase mean?
Who uses the phrase?
Does it have the same connotation now as it did when it was first used?

Mumbling

Why do people mumble?
Is it rude to mumble?
Why is it called "mumbling"?

Bored

What does it mean to be bored?
     (Dictionary.com)

• To make a hole in or through, with or as if with a drill (intransitive)
• To make weary by being dull, repetitive, or tedious: The movie bored us. (transitive)

How do americans relieve their boredom?