Day: February 22, 2017

26. They’re Wet & Weird & Wild, You Make Them Come Alive…26. They’re Wet & Weird & Wild, You Make Them Come Alive…

Every now and then, Keera and Kira hang out and do stuff OTHER than talk about science. Like, sometimes they reminisce about growing up in the 90’s, and the strange toys and commercials and fashion that shaped their impressionable little minds.

That’s how K+K stumbled upon the Amazing Live SEA MONKEYS! Remember getting those eggs in the mail, and how excited you were for your microscopic primates to come alive with just a little water? Kira and Keera do!

On this episode, the Science Ladies talk about this aquatic crustacean species, Artemia salina, (Spoiler Alert: they’re not monkeys. Sorry.) as wells as where they come from, how they evolved, and why you can send them through the mail like a pack of tomato seeds. They also explore the story of Harold von Braunhut, the man who sold these little creatures as living magic tricks, and the science behind really good marketing. 

How to Make Your Own Aquatic WorldHow to Make Your Own Aquatic World

On today’s Everything Is Interesting episode, we talked about Sea Monkeys (you’re welcome) and those neat little glass biospheres they live in sometimes.

The self-contained biospheres are both beautiful and amazing, because everything Sea Monkeys (spoiler alert: brine shrimp) need to survive is provided by their habitat. The shrimp, algae, and bacteria inside a self-contained biosphere complete a nutrient cycle loop, where all organisms are providing the oxygen, CO2, and nutrients that sustain the other organisms in the system.

As promised, here’s a link to some instructions on how to make your OWN aquatic biosphere.

*Note* We did not craft this document, it belongs to Anne Schultz. Thanks for letting us link to your instructions, Anne!

Click here for: DIY AQUATIC BIOME INSTRUCTIONS

*Another Note*  Science Project has a glass biosphere that has been sustaining itself for the last 2 years! However, we used cherry shrimp because they require less salty water, meaning there’s more plants that will survive in a cherry shrimp habitat than in a brine shrimp habitat. If you live in Portland, OR, we happen to know that there are shrimp and plants at Pets on Broadway in NE!