A Whale's Amazing Tooth
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Question Sheet: A Whale's Amazing Tooth

SCIENCE

Before reading:

1. What is a narwhal?
2. What is a unicorn?

During reading:

1. Do all narwhals have a long tooth, or tusk? What do the tusks look like?
2. Why did Martin Nweeia think that he would be a good person to figure out the mystery of the narwhal tusk?
3. What did Frederick Eichmiller's team do with a narwhal tooth?
4. How are narwhal teeth different from human teeth?
5. Why is it surprising that a narwhal tooth is hollow and contains a bundle of nerves?
6. What different types of scientists participated in the narwhal project?

After reading:

1. Why would studying a narwhal tooth require a range of different scientists? What do you suppose each type of scientist did on the project?
2. Compare studying a narwhal with studying another animal of your choice. What additional obstacles do you think someone interested in narwhals would face?
3. Do you think the purpose of a narwhal's tusk will continue to be a mystery for much longer? Why or why not?
4. How might the narwhal's tooth function as a temperature or a pressure sensor?
5. Describe another type of scientific project, which doesn't involve people, that a dentist might find interesting to pursue.
6. Why might certain animals be unable to survive in a zoo?
7. What uses might an animal have for an especially long tooth, or tusk?

SOCIAL STUDIES

1. What other animals live only in the Arctic? See www.saskschools.ca/~gregory/arctic/Awildlife.html (J. Giannetta) or www.mnh.si.edu/arctic/html/wildlife.html (Arctic Studies Center).
2. Which countries border the Arctic? See www.saskschools.ca/~gregory/arctic/Aintro.html (J. Giannetta).

LANGUAGE ARTS

1. Suppose that you are on a month-long expedition in the Artic. What sorts of information would you record on such a trip? Write six sample journal entries describing things that you might observe or encounter. See www.narwhal.org/Expedition2002.html (narwhal.org).
2. The Narwhal's tusk has been a source of myths and legends. See www.narwhal.org/UnicornMyth.html (narwhal.org) or en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unicorn (Wikipedia). Write your own story about why the animal has a tusk.

MATHEMATICS

A narwhal is 15 feet long. A pilot whale is 8.5 meters long. How much shorter is a narwhal than a pilot whale?

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