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Curious Questions from Curious Minds!
Welcome to Curiopedia, where imagination and discovery take shape! Discover something new today with these curious questions from children. Click on the ‘View Answer’ button to find out the answer! If you want your (child’s) curious question answered and featured here, submit it now.
Month Year
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Write away
Why can eraser erase pencil marks and not pen marks?
Abhiroop Batabyal , Hyderabad, Telangana
View AnswerPencils are composed of graphite. When you write with a pencil, graphite particles get stuck to the paper fibres, leaving behind letters you just wrote. When you use an eraser, the sticky rubber in in grabs and holds on to the graphite particles. Poof! No more pencil marks. Pens are different. The dyes used in the ink seep into the paper’s fibres. When you use an eraser, it cannot separate the intermolecular forces, hence making it impossible to erase ink with erasers.
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Cock-A-Doodle-Doo
Why does the rooster crow in the morning?
Abel Jacob , Coimbatore
View AnswerRoosters crow because they have an internal clock that helps them anticipate sunrise. Almost all animals have daily cycles of activity known as ‘circadian rhythms’ that roughly follow the cycle of day and night. Roosters anticipate sunrise to get a head start on their daily hunt for food and defence of territory. The rooster’s sunrise song is actually a way of establishing his territory — he sends a signal to other roosters not to trespass on his area.
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Pearly white
Why are teeth white in colour?
A. Karthik , Hyderabad
View AnswerThe outer part of a tooth is made of a tissue known as the enamel. The enamel is composed of different minerals, of which hydroxyapatite — a phosphate of calcium — is the most prominent. Calcium is naturally white in color, and this explains the colour of our teeth.
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In the piggy bank
Why are pigs used for savings, i.e. ‘piggy’ banks?
S. Deepthika , Coimbatore
View AnswerOne theory is that long before banks existed, people used to drop their money into jars made of orange-coloured clay called ‘pygg’. Over the next two or three centuries, people slowly forgot that ‘pygg’ once referred to the earthenware pots, jars and cups of yesteryear. When potters received requests for ‘pygg’ banks, they started producing banks shaped like ‘pigs’. This appealed to delighted customers, gradually resulting in the cute little ‘piggy’ banks that we see today.