four puppies playing

Whizz Pop Bang science magazine – virtual dog breeding game explained

Mini scientist Poppy explains how to play the virtual breeding game in the Purr-fect pets issue of Whizz Pop Bang science magazine.

Experiment with breeding different dogs together and see what colour the puppies are! Each dog has two copies of the coat colour gene. The black coat gene (B) is dominant and the brown coat gene (b) is recessive. This means that only puppies with bb genes will be brown, and all those with one or two B genes will be black.

What you do:

  1. Cut out the cards on page 19
  2. Choose a male dog and a female dog for breeding and lay their cards out on a table with the names facing up (you should have four cards)
  3. Randomly choose one card for each dog and record the puppy’s genes and coat colour in the table below
  4. Each litter produces four puppies so return the cards to the table, mix them up and repeat step 3 until you have recorded the genes and coat colours of four puppies
  5. Keep choosing different dogs to breed to see what colour their puppies will be

You should find:
Even though Daisy and Max are black, they can still produce brown puppies together, but Buddy and Bella will never produce brown puppies, even if they’re bred with a brown dog. Only Molly with Rocky will produce all brown puppies. Brown puppies are rarer than black so they cost more. This is why pet breeders often breed closely related animals with rare features together.

To play this game, buy the Purr-fect Pets issue of Whizz Pop Bang magazine from our online shop for just £3.75 with free UK delivery.


Post Comment
Royal Institution logo

Royal Institution Christmas lectures 2017

CHRISTMAS LECTURES 2017: The language of life

Later this month the amazing Professor Sophie Scott will deliver the 2017 CHRISTMAS LECTURES from the Royal Institution. Sophie’s a neuroscientist, stand-up comedian and an expert in laughter!  She’ll be unpacking all the amazing ways in which humans and animals communicate, and to celebrate we’re taking a peek at the most famous talking animals…

You can watch The Royal Institution Christmas lectures on BBC Four at 8.00pm on 26th, 27th and 28th December.

Royal Institute Christmas lectures Animal communicators
Royal Institute Christmas lectures famous animal communicators

 

Watch The Royal Institution Christmas lectures on BBC Four at 8.00pm on 26th, 27th and 28th December – let us know what you learnt from Sophie!


Post Comment
Whizz Pop Bang science magazine for kids day of the dead skulls

The Whizz Pop Bang Halloween issue is out!

SPECTACULAR SKELETONS

The brilliant science of bones. Did you know that, weight for weight, bone is stronger than steel? Yes, your skeleton is made up of some spookily awesome stuff! Get stuck straight into the bare bones of this issue by crafting a scary skull mask, experimenting with some brilliant bendy bones and building your own model skeleton.

Buy this issue here and get crafting some seriously spooky stuff ready for Halloween ?

Activities included in this issue: make a ball and socket joint, bend a real bone, make a bendy back bone, make a moveable skeleton, craft an x-ray machine and make a Halloween skull mask. Loads of awesome science fun for kids!


Post Comment
Animal Activity book by Isabel Thomas

WIN! Brand new Animal Activity book by Isabel Thomas

Love science books? We’re giving our readers the chance to win brand new hot off the press awesome science books, cool hey?!

And who better to kick start these monthly competitions than the awesome science writer Isabel Thomas with two signed copies of her new book Animal Activities, ROAR! To enter simply answer the question ‘Which baby animals are sometimes called pinkies? Sausage dogs, worms or harvest mice?

Leave your answer in the comment box below. Winners will be announced on Saturday 30th September.

September competition Isabel Thomas Animal Activity

 


Post Comment
conker in shell

September issue: Super seeds

In this issue we go mad for conkers and pine cones with fun hands-on science activities to learn all about how seeds spread. Everyone wants a bit of distance from their parents from time to time, but since seeds can’t move, they instead rely on cunning techniques to find their own patch of ground. Imagine being fired away from your parent in a green slimy liquid! Yes, this issue we’re looking at seed dispersal – you can try modelling dandelion seeds, making your own pinecone bird feeders and experimenting with a sycamore seed heli-spinner. Find out about the history of the invention of Velcro, which was inspired by nature’s own burs and take a peek inside a top-secret seed bank buried deep inside an arctic mountain. Happy experimenting kids!

Whizz Pop Bang science magazine for kids issue 26 SUPER SEEDS
Whizz Pop Bang science magazine for kids SUPER SEEDS (issue 26)

Not a subscriber? Click here to start a monthly subscription from just £2.92 a month with FREE Uk delivery. 

Buy this SUPER SEEDS single issue in our online shop packed full of all our super science magazines and bundles!


Post Comment