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Lesson 1. How We See Color

Look around you and count how many colors you can see. There must be hundreds.
You might ask how we can see these various colors. Well, the colors we see actually
come from light.

We need light to see colors. White light, such as sunlight, is a mixture of many
colors of light. When it hits an object, some of the light is absorbed by the object
and the rest is reflected. The color of the reflected light is the color that the object
appears to be.

For example, when white light hits a red apple, the apple absorbs all of the colors
except for red. Only red light is reflected and enters your eyes. This is why the
apple looks red. If an object absorbs all the colors of light, it will look black.

How do we know that white light is made of so many colors? You can do an easy
experiment. Shine white light through a prism. The prism will break it down into
the seven colors of the rainbow! This not only shows that white light consists of
many different colors. It also shows that we need white light in order to see the
colorful world around us.

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Lesson 2. Chinese Beliefs About Colors

When you see colors, some feelings or images may come to mind. You may think of
nature, danger, good luck, or bad luck. For cultures around the world, colors are
symbols. Their meanings, though, are not the same in each culture. For the Chinese,
some colors have a special meaning. It’s well known that they think of red as good
luck, but what about the other colors?

The Chinese believed that black was the color of the heavens, because they noticed
that the northern sky was often strangely black. This old belief became a saying:
“heaven and earth of mysterious black.” Red was the color of good fortune and joy.
Therefore, it was seen everywhere during celebrations such as weddings, birthdays,
and the New Year. People gave money as gifts in red envelopes as well.

Green was the color of spring, and it represented energy and strength. White was
a symbol of brightness and purity. It also symbolized death, so people wore white
when loved ones died. Yellow was considered to be the most beautiful color. As it
was a symbol of the earth’s rulers, Chinese kings wore yellow and lived under yellow
roofs. Some of these beliefs remain to this day, and the Chinese continue to follow
them. What do colors mean to your culture? Are they similar to the examples above?

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Lesson 3. Healing with Color

Nowadays, natural healing methods are becoming more popular. Color therapy is
one of the oldest natural therapies. It has been used since ancient times. According
to color therapists, colors can affect us both mentally and physically. That’s because
color is light of a certain wavelength and energy, so each color has unique healing
powers.

Warm colors, such as red, orange, and yellow, are thought to have energizing
effects. Color therapists believe red can help increase blood flow, reduce tiredness,
and relieve colds. They think yellow helps you feel better when you feel down. They
also think it helps when you have trouble digesting food.

On the other hand, cool colors, such as violet, blue, and green, are thought to have
calming effects. They are thought to make you relaxed. You can use blue and violet
to relieve headaches and heal wounds. They can also help you get a good night’s
sleep.

Try color therapy in your daily life. You can decorate your room with a certain color,
wear clothes that have your favorite color, or eat some colored food. Or, you can
simply imagine that color. But don’t focus on one color all the time. It might have a
bad effect on you! Just try different colors to see how you feel about them.

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Lesson 4. Dyeing Naturally

People usually color fabrics using man-made chemical dyes. However, before people
developed these dyes, what did they use? They used nature’s colors, of course.
Their dyes came mainly from minerals, plants, and animals.

In Korea, people have used unripe persimmons as a dye for a long time. At first,
people living on Jeju Island dyed fishing lines with the fruit to strengthen them.
Later, they used it to make cotton stronger and also to make traditional clothes.
These brown-colored clothes are called garot which means “persimmon clothes.” They
are popular for work and everyday wear on the island.

To dye fabrics with persimmon juice, first, break up some unripe fruit. Then, soak
the fabric in the juice. Next, dry the fabric on the grass under the sun. After that,
soak it in water or more juice and dry it again. Keep soaking and drying it several
times until it’s the right shade. To get different shades of brown or black, use different
amounts of juice and water. You can also get different shades by varying the drying
time.

Natural dyeing takes more time and work than using chemicals. However, wearing
clothes colored with natural dye is healthier for our skin. In addition, these dyes
don’t release harmful chemicals into the environment. These are good reasons
for choosing nature’s colors.

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Lesson 5. A History of Salt

Nowadays, we can find salt in most kitchens. But in the past, salt was a rare and
valuable mineral. Back in the sixth century, it was even worth as much as gold!

During the Stone Age, people ate a lot of red meat. Because red meat is naturally
rich in salt, people didn’t need to find salt elsewhere. However, as farming became
popular and people ate more wheat and rice, they had less salt in their diets. So,
people had to search for other ways to get salt.

Around 6000 B.C., the Chinese began collecting salt from lakes to flavor their food.
This is the oldest recorded history of salt production. But there were other methods
of collecting salt, too. People in Central Asia mined rock salt underground around
4500 B.C. Around 3000 B.C., the Egyptians began to collect salt from evaporated
seawater. By 800 B.C., the Chinese were producing salt by boiling seawater. It took
less time than waiting for the seawater to evaporate.

Because these methods took a long time, salt was very valuable. In fact, it was even
used as money. In China, people paid taxes with salt. In Rome, soldiers were paid
part of their wages in salt.

Salt is now very cheap to buy. But it remains an important part of the human diet,
and it is something we can’t live without.

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Lesson 6. Our Bodies and Salt

Salt is a type of mineral. Adding a little salt to food can bring out the food’s natural
flavor. It can also be used to preserve food.

Not only does salt improve our diets, it is essential to our health. Our muscles
need it to move. Our hearts need it to beat. Even the brain and nerves need salt to
communicate and function properly. If we do not get enough salt, the systems
in our bodies do not work well. We might get tired, and our thinking might slow
down. Our muscles might get sore, or we might even get headaches. Eating salt
helps our bodies and minds work better.

However, just as too much salt can ruin the flavor of food, it can also harm our bodies.
Scientists say that too much salt can cause high blood pressure. This is dangerous
because it can lead to heart problems. And because people tend to like the taste of
salty food, heart problems are becoming more common.

Salt is an important mineral that our bodies need. We can’t live without it. However,
it is wise to pay attention to the amount of salt in your diet if you care about your
health.

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Lesson 7. Salar de Uyuni

Salar de Uyuni, located in southwest Bolivia, is the largest salt flat in the world. At
over 12,000 square kilometers, it looks endless. Because of its incredible beauty, it
is a popular tourist attraction. When it rains, the area is covered with a thin layer
of water. This water acts as a huge mirror for the sky.

However, it is not just the beauty that attracts tourists. The area lets them take fun
pictures, too. For example, look at the photos below. The first photo shows a pair of
sunglasses and two people. They look tiny compared to the sunglasses, and they
look as if they are standing on the frames. In the other photo, it looks as if a giant
is about to eat a tiny human!

Why do these pictures look real? Well, there are no objects to give perspective.
Normally, when we see something, we have a way to tell distance and size. Our
brains compare things to other nearby objects. In this way, we get perspective.
However, on the Uyuni salt flat, there is almost nothing to compare things with, so
it is hard to judge the distances between objects.

Salar de Uyuni gives tourists an opportunity to enjoy nature’s wonders and have
fun at the same time. So before you go, look up some fun photo ideas.

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Lesson 8. Salami and Kimchi

In ancient times it was difficult to keep food fresh for a long time. There were no
refrigerators, so food went bad and made people sick. Fortunately, people
discovered salt. Not only did it add flavor to food, but it also dried it out. Therefore,
it had no moisture for fungi and bacteria to grow in. By using salt, food could last
for longer periods of time.

Salami is a popular meat that is preserved with salt. The word “salami” contains
the Italian word for salt, sale, and it means “all kinds of salted meats.” To make salami,
you need to mix salt and other seasonings with ground meat and hang it to dry.
After a while, you can enjoy the salami.

Meat is not the only kind of food that can be preserved using salt, though. Vegetables
can be preserved that way, too. One example is kimchi, which is enjoyed daily in
Korea. The word “kimchi” comes from the word chimchae, which means “soaked
vegetables.” To make kimchi, you need to soak vegetables in salt water. The salt in
the water preserves them and keeps them crunchy.

Today we have refrigerators, but that does not stop us from using salt to preserve
food. After all, such foods have long been part of our daily diets!

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Lesson 9. How We Hear Sound

Sound doesn’t have a physical form, but we still hear it. How does this happen?

When you hit something, the air molecules around it start to shake. These vibrating
molecules then shake the other molecules nearby. The vibration is passed on like a
wave. When it reaches your ear, it causes tiny hairs inside to shake, too. The nerves
under the hairs sense this and send a message to your brain. Your brain reads this
message as sound.

In order to travel, sound needs a medium. This medium can be a solid, a liquid, or
a gas. This is why we can’t hear sound in outer space, where there is no air. Here is
a simple experiment to show that sound needs a medium.

Experiment
What You Need
• an empty plastic bottle • matches
• a small bell • tape
• a short, firm hard stick

Find the objects listed above. Attach the small bell to the end of the stick. Then,
attach the other end of the stick to the inside of the bottle cap. Put the cap on the
bottle and shake it. Can you hear the bell ring?

Now, remove the bottle cap from the bottle. Light a few matches and drop them
into the bottle. Quickly put the cap back on. Wait for the matches to burn out and
the bottle to cool. Shake the bottle again. The bell should sound softer or not be
heard at all. Why?

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Lesson 10. Silent No More

On TV, the sea seems peaceful and quiet. It looks as if there would only be the
sounds of ocean waves above the surface and the soft sounds of sea animals below.

However, this silent-looking world under the sea is actually not silent. This is because
of all the noise that humans make. They sail boats across the sea and play water
sports by the beach. Other noises are made when people drill deep into the sea floor
looking for oil and gas. Some people even use special equipment that produces
sound waves to find fish and other things underwater. All of these activities create
loud noises in the water and harm the lives of many sea animals.

Like humans, sea animals need to communicate with one another. They need to find
food, mates, and their way around. But man-made noises disturb their signals. The
noises cause sea animals to get lost and to be unable to hear their prey coming or
their mates calling. Some become injured or end up dying because their signals get
confused.

Unlike garbage and oil, underwater noise pollution cannot be seen. But it’s obvious
that we are harming ocean life. We must reduce noise pollution as soon as possible.
If we don’t study the problem now and take action quickly, it will be too late.

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Lesson 11. Listen to This!

When we think of making music, we usually think of musical instruments. But have
you ever heard of music made with garbage cans or vegetables? What kind of silly
music is that, you may ask.

Well, there is one group called Stomp. They perform a unique combination of
percussion, dancing, and visual comedy. The music and dance are very fun and
energetic. They stomp around the stage and create rhythms by beating or
stepping on everyday things. Even garbage cans and shopping carts can be
instruments. Anything can turn into a percussion instrument as long as it makes
a sound. All you need is your imagination!

There is another group called The Vegetable Orchestra that makes all kinds of
instruments with vegetables. For example, they make flutes with carrots and they
hit pumpkins like drums. Many of these instruments create different notes, and when
they are played together they produce beautiful harmonies. The audience can enjoy
the smell of vegetables in the air while they listen to the music. What’s more, they
can eat fresh vegetable soup made from the instruments when the concert ends.
Because the instruments only last for one day, the performers make new ones for
each performance.

Now you know you don’t need to buy expensive instruments to make music. Just
take a look around your house. You can make your own instrument out of an everyday
object and create your own unique music.

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Lesson 12. Echo and Narcissus

There once lived a nymph called Echo, who was pretty but too talkative. One day,
she angered the goddess Hera, so Hera used her magic power on Echo. From then
on, Echo could not say what she wanted to. She could only repeat what others had
said.

One day, Echo saw a young man in the forest. He looked so handsome and strong
that she fell deeply in love with him. He was Narcissus, a man with a cold heart who
didn’t want friends or love.

Echo quietly followed him. Sensing her presence, Narcissus asked who she was.
But nothing came out of her mouth except what he had spoken. She lost hope and
tried to hold him, but he pushed her away. It broke her heart, and she grew thinner
by the day. Finally, her body was gone, but her voice remained. Even today, if you
shout in the mountains, you will hear the soft sound of Echo answering back.

After running away from Echo, Narcissus came to a pond. When he bent down
to drink some water, he saw a face looking back at him. The face was so beautiful
that Narcissus fell in love with it. Whenever he tried to touch it, though, it
disappeared. Narcissus was so sad that he became thinner and thinner, until he too
was gone. A flower grew where he died, and that flower was named Narcissus.

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Lesson 13. The History of the Toilet

Many people don’t care much about toilets, but they are an important part of human
life. Let’s take a look at the history of the toilet.

The First Flush Toilet

The flush toilet was first used in the Indus Valley Civilization. As the cities there
grew, people wanted a more advanced system to get rid of their wastes. So, they
built flush toilets! Most homes had a flush toilet. After using it, people poured water
down the brick-lined drain. The drain then carried the waste into a large hole. From
there, it was collected and used as fertilizer. It was a system that was quite similar
to what we have today.

Roman Toilet Culture

The Romans had a similar toilet system. Most homes had toilets, but there were
public ones, too. The public toilets became a social place where people could sit
around and chat while using the bathroom! More surprisingly, men and women
would go to the toilets together.

The Middle Ages

With the fall of the Roman Empire, their early advanced toilet culture ended as well.
Around this time, people started using small containers called “chamber pots” in
their homes. There were no drains to carry the waste away, so people simply threw
it out the window.

Modern Times
Since the invention of the first modern toilet in the 16th century, the toilet has been
constantly developing. Using the bathroom is much more comfortable now. Some
toilets even have heated seats!

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Lesson 14. A Toilet Museum

In the city of Suwon, South Korea, there is a special building. It looks like a giant
toilet. It is a museum called Haewoojae. It is also known as Mr. Toilet House. It
exhibits all kinds of things related to the toilet.

Haewoojae was created by Sim Jae-Duck. He was nicknamed Mr. Toilet because he
was born in a bathroom. He thought of the toilet as an innovation that keeps our
world sanitary and saves people from getting sick. He wanted to change people’s
idea of toilets as being dirty and show how they have improved the lives of humans.
So he decided to make a toilet museum.

On the first floor of the museum, you can learn about the different kinds of toilets
used around the world. In the center of the first floor, there is a bathroom. It has
glass walls, but don’t worry. When you turn on the light, the glass turns dark so that
the user can have some privacy. On the second floor, you can learn about Sim Jae-
Duck. And outside the building, you can get a history lesson. The outdoor exhibit
shows various types of toilets that were used in ancient times.

Haewoojae reminds us of the importance of the toilet. It shows us that toilets have
been and remain an important part of people’s lives all around the world.

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Lesson 15. The Journey of Wastewater

When you flush the toilet or take a shower, the water goes down the drain. But then
what happens? Does it go directly into the rivers or the sea? No. The wastewater
needs special treatment to make it clean and usable again. Let’s follow the journey
of wastewater.

Once wastewater goes down the drain, it enters a sewer pipe underground. The pipe
takes the wastewater to a sewage treatment plant. The first step of the sewage
treatment process is to remove large objects from the water.

After that, the wastewater is sent to large tanks, where the solid waste sinks to the
bottom. Then, the solid waste is separated from the water until only tiny bits remain.

The water is then moved to the next treatment area. Here, air is pumped into the
water. The air helps bacteria eat the tiny bits of solid waste. Finally, some chemicals
are added to kill the harmful bugs you can’t see.

The water is clean now and ready to be released and sent back into the water
supply. It can be used for everything from watering gardens to filling swimming
pools. It’s even used to make drinking water! At last, the water has returned to us
once again.

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Lesson 16. Art from a Urinal

In 1917, Marcel Duchamp shocked the art community. He displayed a urinal in an

art exhibition. It was white, smooth, curvy, and made of porcelain. The piece was
called Fountain. It was just a standard urinal found in any men’s bathroom. The only
difference was that it was turned upside down and signed by R. Mutt, a fake name
made up by Duchamp.

What was he trying to show? He picked a random object and took it from its original
position. Then he just put it somewhere else and called it art. Through this action,
he showed that a work of art is not the object itself but the way people interpret
that object. He suggested that viewers should freely wonder about what art is.

At first, Fountain was rejected, and people did not understand Duchamp’s concept.
People even laughed at him. However, after the Second World War, people became
a lot more open-minded. They were now open to new, less traditional forms of
art. Duchamp’s idea helped change the definition of art. Art is no longer just about
beauty.

Today, artists are free to explore different concepts. Fountain was selected in 2004
as “the most influential artwork of the 20th century” by famous artists and historians.
It stands out because it changed the way people think about art.

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