Typical homeschool conversations-
(or: “How A Train of Thought is Derailed“)
Computer time for me! Woo Hoo!
The 19-yr old is holed-up studying for her Biology Lab test tomorrow.
The 12-yr old is working on Writing.
Silence.
Blessed silence.
12-yr old: Mom? What's next?
*shakes head to clear "mindless" and transition to "mature"*
Me: You're done? Ok. Go ahead and read the next chapter in The History of Medicine.
Back to silence.
12-yr old: Mom? Were firearms around in the 1800's?
Me: Yes. That was during the Old West.
(She's seen all the John Wayne movies. That's a distinctive time period for us....)
12-yr old: When were firearms invented?
Me: I don't know the exact time. They've been around for awhile, though.
12-yr old: When did the Medieveal time period end?
Me: I don't know exactly. Why?
12-yr old: Did they have firearms then?
Me: *sigh* I don’t know. Ask your Dad. He knows all that.
12-yr old: Can you Google it?
Me: Ok, just a second.....
*while I'm Googling*
12-yr old: Mom?
Me: Yes?
12-yr old: Can humans get rabies?
Me: Yes. But I don’t know if they get the “foam at the mouth” type where they bite people.
12-yr old: But that’s what I’m talking about.
Me: *sigh* Let me Google it.
12-yr old: Mom?
Me: Hold on! I’m already Googling two questions.
Me: Are you listening?
“The symptoms of rabies in humans include irritability, headache, pain, itching or a twitching at the infection site, and fever. As the disease progresses, muscle spasms in the throat and respiratory tract affect breathing, and the sufferer may have difficulty swallowing, the combination of which can produce the trademark “foaming at the mouth”. Further symptoms of rabies as it progresses are hallucinations, convulsions, seizures, paralysis, and eventually death. ” http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-symptoms-of-rabies-in-humans.htm
“Wild animals most commonly found to carry rabies in the United States are raccoons, followed by bats, skunks, and foxes. An estimated 85% of animal rabies cases in the US are attributed to wildlife. In domestic animals and livestock, cats are the most commonly infected animals, though dogs tend to be responsible for more bites. However, bats are responsible for well over half of the cases of rabies transmitted to humans in the US.” http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-symptoms-of-rabies-in-humans.htm
“The fire-lance had developed into the gun by the 1100s, the date of the earliest known depiction of a gun, a sculpture from a cave in Sichuan. The earliest Islamic documentation of the gun is from the work of the 13th century scientist Hasan al-Rammah. The earliest European documentation of the gun is Walter de Milemete's De Nobilitatibus, Sapientiis, et Prudentiis Regum from 1326. Gunpowder arrived in India by the mid-1300s, but could have been introduced by the Mongols perhaps as early as the mid-1200s.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearms
Now where was I?
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Posted by Arby
