Grade 6 Main Idea
YOU DO
The Earth’s Solar System
Our solar system is a big place with all kinds of interesting things in it. There are nine planets in our solar system. Earth is the planet that we live on. The sun, which we see every day, is not a planet. It is a star. There are also many other stars that we see in the sky at night. Asteroids and meteors are also in our solar system, but they are not planets either. Comets exist in our solar system, too. Sometimes you can see them travel past the earth. They have bright tails you can see as they travel by our planet.
Preserving Meat, Fish and Mummies
Ordinarily, when a living thing dies, decay soon sets in. The decay is caused by bacteria, molds, and other small forms of life. As they feed on dead material, they break it down. The material, which is rich in minerals that plants need, is added to the soil. In this way the material is recycled. It is used by plants, which are eaten by animals. To do their work, bacteria and other small living things need water. They cannot multiply or grow without it. If dead material dries out rapidly and stays dry, decay does not take place. In fact, for thousands of years people have been preserving meat and fish this way, by drying them in the sun or packing them in salt, which draws water from the tissues. So, as you can see, most mummies, whether natural or manmade, are formed by rapid drying.
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