If you've ever watched the antics and acrobatics of a sleek, agile ferret at the pet store or at a friend's home, then you'll understand why ferrets hold that status as some of the most amusing and entertaining pets available today. With all that energy, though, comes a pet that can prove to be highly demanding of your time, patience, and resources. Before you give in to the urge to purchase one of these popular pets, learn to properly care for a ferret and determine whether or not one is really suited to your lifestyle.

In determining whether or not you have a lifestyle and household that's conducive to ferret care, ask yourself where you'll be keeping your ferret. Many ferret owners choose to allow their ferrets to have free reign of the house, but this decision involves litter training your ferret and very thoroughly ferret-proofing your house. Electrical cords that can be chewed must be covered in metal coiling, tight squeezes behind appliances must be blocked off, windows must be kept securely screened or closed at all times, air ducts must be covered with ferret-proof vents, and the floor must be kept clear of any items that might be ingested. Other ferret owners opt to keep their ferrets caged. An appropriate ferret cage will be at least 18" long, 18" wide, and 30" deep. Ferrets love to climb and explore, so the more toys you provide, the better. A litter pan can also be placed in the cage to make cleaning easier. Once of the biggest parts of learning how to care for a ferret is accepting the fact that ferrets can be extremely messy. You'll need to clean your ferret's cage at least once a week, and the litter box will need to be scooped one to two times a day at a minimum. Don't ever use clumping cat litter for ferrets, as it can lead to respiratory problems. Your best choice will be one of the many available natural litters such as those made of recycled newspaper.

Exercise and play is a major part of pet ferret care. If your ferret has free reign of the house, he's probably getting plenty of exercise, but you'll still need to give your ferret plenty of attention by grooming and interacting with him. If you're keeping your ferret caged, he'll need to be let out for a few hours every day for some supervised exercise. Again, make sure that the room you allow your ferret to roam in has been thoroughly ferret-proofed. Give your ferret plenty of toys such as pvc pipes, rubber balls, and cat toys, and keep in mind that one of the greatest things you can do for a single ferret is to get it a companion. Many people choose another ferret, of course, but sometimes, cats and ferrets will get along well, if the cat is introduced to the ferret as a kitten. Never introduce an adult cat to a ferret unless you want to run the risk of the cat regarding the ferret as a tasty meal!

If you're looking into getting a ferret, you're probably aware of the fact that they aren't the sweetest smelling creatures on earth. A lot of their musky odor has to do with whether or not they've been spayed or neutered. Having your ferret spayed or neutered significantly cuts down on musk production. Bathing your ferret can also help, but keep in mind that if you over-bathe them, their musk glands will only work overtime! Regular brushing is needed, as ferrets can get hairballs just like cats. Talk to your vet about preventing ear mites and fleas, and also have him or her show you how to properly trim your ferret's toenails. Your skin will thank you!

Now that you have an idea of the basics of how to care for a ferret, it's time to find your new friend. While pet stores are the obvious choice, many animal shelters also house ferrets, dumped by people who weren't prepared for the time that goes into properly caring for these creatures. Wherever you choose to find your ferret, be sure that you can promise both yourself and your new pet that they'll have a long, happy life to look forward to in your home.

About The Author: Barry S. Mcgee is a pet enthusiast. His site at: http://www.squidoo.com/petcareonline provides advice and information on all aspects of pet care for all types of pets including dogs, cats, ferrets and others and makes it easier for pet owners to choose the best solution for their companion's care.

For answers to all your pet care questions, please visit: http://www.squidoo.com/petcareonline

With the increasing influx of new housing developments and shopping complexes, more and more wildlife habitats are becoming extinct each year. To help restore some part of the ecosystem, our backyards can become lifesavers for many animals such as birds, butterflies, bats, squirrels, raccoons, chipmunks, skunks and frogs. What advantage to you gain from this? The obvious seems to be able to watch animals in their natural environment; the other is that you will have to spend less time and money keeping up your yard. What constitutes a Backyard Wildlife Habitat? It is simple, really - a backyard for the needs of wildlife. However, you must be certified, by at least having a small area - as small as a few square feet - and be ready to show or prove the following:

1. Food: trees and plants, feeders for birds, squirrels, birdseeds, insects (for lizards and toads)
2. Water (for drinking and bathing); birdbaths, ponds, water gardens, dripping hose, dish.
3. Cover: shrubs, crown vetch, a discarded Christmas tree, a dead tree trunk, brush piles, rocks, stonewalls.
4. A place to raise young; heavy cover, bird houses, squirrel boxes, water (for frogs, salamanders, other reptiles, insects)

The National Wildlife Federation suggests utilizing native trees, shrubs, and flowers that usually require less water, fertilizer, and pest control. Go to your local state and fish department's website or contact them to find out what can be planted to attract wild life. Vary the heights of plants so you have layers of foliage. Consider plants and trees that hold berries into winter: pyracantha, holly, juniper, dogwood, madrone, toyon, bayberry, bittersweet. Include a firebreak, which can be as simple as a mowed path. Once planting is done, try to conserve even more water through mulching and other practices.

To attract hummingbirds: Plant tubular flowers bearing nectar. You can also put out feeders containing a mixture of four parts water to one part sugar. (Don't use honey or red dye). You should change the sugar water and clean the feeder every three days. Consider: acacia, butterfly weed, butterfly bush, delphinium, echeveria, eucalyptus, fireburst, fuchsia, hollyhocks, impatiens, lantana, lobelia, morning glory, nasturtium, nicotiana, penstemon, phlox, red buckeye, salvia, sweet William

To attract other birds: Plant a variety of seed and fruit-bearing trees, grasses, and plants. Consider: barberry, bayberry, black cherry, blackberry, blueberry, blazing star, bluestem grass, buckthorn, columbine, coralbells, cotoneaster, elderberry, flowering crab apple, grape holly, holly honeysuckle, jewelweed, juniper, mulberry, oak, phlox, pine and cedar trees, sunflower, thistle, trumpet creeper, viburnum, Virginia Creeper

To attract butterflies: Locate your garden in a warm and protected place. Plant flowers in big clumps so butterflies can find them. Some butterflies tend to eat one kind of plant when in the larval stage, another when mature. Monarch larvae, for example, eat only milkweed, while mature monarchs sip nectar from a variety of flowers. Plan your garden so that flowers will be blooming throughout the growing season. Purple is the favorite color of butterflies, so keep that in mind when choosing flowers to plant. (They also like orange, pink, lavender, yellow, and white.) Provide water and some large, dark-colored stones where butterflies can sunbathe. Don't use pesticide.

Kiya Sama is an author on http://www.Writing.Com/
which is a site for Writers.

A recent study funded by the National Science Foundation used over 100 computers to analyse the evolutionary history of the Earth's earliest animals. In the 19th century, Charles Darwin introduced the view that all living organisms form a tree of life from which the various species branch off. Although the tree currently looks more like a bush than a real tree, Darwin's supporters have not completely discarded his basic idea.

Evolutionary biologists had previously speculated that simple creatures should have diverged from the trunk of the tree before the more complex ones. Accordingly, they believed that the sponge was the first animal to branch off.

However, the results of the research, published in the April 10 issue of the British science journal Nature, were a big surprise and disappointment for evolutionists. Casey Dunn, whose research team made the groundbreaking discovery, said according to physorg.com, "This was a complete shocker, so shocking that we initially thought something had gone very wrong."

The results were so shocking that the researchers had to check and re-check them several times before they were willing to believe what they had discovered.

The first animal to branch off was not the sponge but the comb jelly. This is significant since the comb jelly has tissues and a nervous system, which are complex systems thought to have evolved much later. A sponge, by contrast, is a more "primitive" creature, lacking both tissue and a nervous system. Dunn thus suggested that the first animal was more complex than previously believed.

In other words, the results were diametrically opposed to the expectations of scientists supporting the theory of evolution. Nonetheless, most of them are probably not prepared to discard their pet theory but will merely attempt to adjust the tree of life, even though part of it is now clearly upside down.

Joel Kontinen is a translator and novelist currently living in Finland. His background includes an MA in translation studies and a BA in Bible and Theology. He likes to keep up-to-date on science news and often comments on creation/evolution and origins issues

Blog: http://joelkontinen.blogspot.com/

Prior to 1600 the science industry was small, mainly supporting theactivities of University "experimenters" and philosophers. All thatwas to change with a series of discoveries that would pave the way forthe industrial revolution.

In the early 1650's OTTO VON GUERICKE ,a German experimentalphilosopher, was making observations by experimenting with a pump onwater placed in a barrel, but found that when the water was drawn offthe air permeated the wood. - He then took a globe of copper fittedwith pump and stopcock, and discovered that he could pump out air aswell as water. Thus he became the inventor of the air-pump (1650).

He illustrated his discovery before the emperor Ferdinand III atRegensburg in 1654, by the experiment of the "Magdeburg hemispheres."Taking two hollow hemispheres of copper, twenty inches in diameter, the edges of which fitted nicely together, he exhausted the air frombetween them by means of his pump, and it is recorded that thirtyhorses, fifteen back to back, were unable to pull them asunder untilthe air was readmitted.

By this experiment Von Guericke showed the world that seeminglyinsubstantial gases could exert astonishing forces -- forces thatcould probably be harnessed. Effectively, Von Guericke had discoveredthe vacuum pump, and also demonstrated the force of atmosphericpressure using his pump. Without that experiment's results, the wholeindustrial revolution, and the science industry that was built tosupport it, would have gone in a different direction.

In 1657, upon learning of the invention of the air pump by Otto vonGuericke, Robert Boyle followed up the work and showed that a vacuum(or at least a near vacuum) could exist. In New ExperimentsPhysico-Mechanicall, Touching the Spring of the Air, and Its Effects(1660), Boyle described some 43 experiments with the air pump. Amonghis many conclusions, he noted that air has weight, exerts pressure,and is elastic; that sound cannot travel through a vacuum; and thatair is essential for combustion and for respiration by livingcreatures. And in observing that the volume of a gas varies inverselywith pressure, he arrived at his famous law of pneumatics,posthumously named Boyle's law.

All of this work can be seen as a direct consequence of the VonGuericke Magdeburg hemisphere experiment and for the rest of theseventeenth century, people worked to find a way to make use of theforces that Von Guericke and Boyle had described.

There were also "side" issues from the sphere experiments, in that theresults led Boyle and other chemists to look directly at the nature ofgases and, indirectly, to the formulation of atomic theory. It couldbe said that the transition from Alchemy to Chemistry came from Boyle,via the Magdeberg experiments, ushering in the era of chemistry as abusiness.

The industrial revolution led to a rapid expansion in the actualindustry of science, as ever more machines were built andexperimenters made ever more discoveries, which led to ever moredemand for materials and an industry to support and driveindustrialisation.

For example, other aspects of Boyle's work directlyinfluenced by the Magdeburg spheres experiment led to the discovery ofoxygen, which in turn led to work on combustion, respiratory diseasesand the analysis of the elements. It also helped to solve the problemsof mine drainage, and produced advances in metallurgy, notably steelproduction. The examination of gasses would one day lead to theinvestigation of light passing through the gasses, and that in turn tothe discovery of cathode rays and the television set.

So without Von Guericke's work, it could reasonably be said that therewould be no vacuum pumps and no steam engines, no industrialrevolution, no mass production of metals, no internal combustionengine, no television.

It wouldn't be just the science industry thatwas different...the whole industrialised world would be a verydifferent place today.

William Meikle is a Scottish tech author, with 20 years experience in IT management. He is available for all freelance writing work. Contact him and read more free advice at his web site http://www.williammeikle.com

It's that time of the year again! Time to create, design and carry out a science project for the school science fair. Stumped? Don't worry this article will help you plan a 5th grade project in science.

Here is a great 5th grade science fair project idea:

Every 5th grade project in science needs these important sections: title, materials, purpose (of the experiment), hypothesis (what you think is going to happen), procedure, results and conclusion. For this 5th grade science fair project idea:

Title: Come up with your own title!

Purpose: We all heard the saying water and oil do not mix. Why? Water and oil are both liquids and should mix like liquids. What will happen when we actually test this saying and mix oil and water? What will happen when we mix honey in? What will happen when when place objects in this mixture?

Hypothesis: This section is for your predictions. What do you think will happen when you pour the liquids in the jars? What do you think would happen to the objects? When you place objects into water, they usually sink. Do you think this will happen when you place objects in liquids that are not water? Don't worry about being right! Hypothesis can be wrong, after all you need to do the experiment to find out.

Materials: For this 5th grade science fair project idea, you will need

1. honey
2. small objects of different weights such as paper clips, coins, toys, marbles, etc.
3. two different jars that are at least 8 inches tall
4. water
5. vegetable oil
6. food coloring

Procedure:

1. Pour honey into one jar so it is 2 inches high.
2. Food color the water (pick whatever color you like best!) and then pour 2 inches of water into the same jar with the honey.
3. Then add oil to the same jar, 2 inches high again.
4. Pour the liquids in reverse order in the second jar. (oil, water, honey)
5. Put the objects in one jar. See what happens to the objects after 10 minutes, one hour, two hours.
6. Repeat step five for objects in the second jar.

Results: What happened? Describe everything. You don't need to include explanations of why something occurred. Make sure to bring to jars to the science fair!

Visit John's site at http://sciencefairprojectidea.blogspot.com for more on this 5th grade science fair project idea and other tips for a 5th grade project in science.

John Liu is currently studying at Cornell University.