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ABC CANADA, with the help of zig, has launched a new multimedia campaign to help promote Family Literacy Day. Advertisements and promotional material feature a variety of thought-provoking questions. Here are the questions, and their respective answers.

Why do dogs have wet noses?
There are several different theories for this. One, is that the moisture that builds on dogs’ noses helps keep them cool on hot days. Another, is that the moisture on their noses enhances their sense of smell, allowing them to easily hunt their prey or escape predators.

What are six ways to get rid of vampires?
Literature suggests the most common ways are: drive a wooden stake through their heart; burn them with fire; expose them to sunlight; ward them off with garlic; melt them with holy water; or puncture them with a silver weapon.

Why do our ears get hairier with age?
Everyone has tiny ear hairs to prevent dirt and pollutants from entering the body. While there is no scientific evidence as to why we get extra hair growth, one theory is that as you grow older, the hair follicles in the ears become more responsive to the testosterone hormone, which fuels hair growth.

What is the memory span of a goldfish?
Research has proven that goldfish have a longer memory span than most might assume. Various tests have demonstrated that goldfish have a memory span of at least three months and that they are able to differentiate colours, sounds and shapes.

Why are clouds fluffy?
Clouds appear to be fluffy, but they are not actually fluffy like a cotton ball. When warm air rises, it expands and cools, turning into water vapour. The water vapour condenses as it continues to rise and attaches to tiny dust particles floating in the air. The water on each dust particle forms into a droplet, and once millions of these droplets join together, they become a mass of water. These masses can take on many different shapes and sizes and look fluffy as a result of the many millions of floating water particles.

Why do we drive on the right side of the road?
Historically, everyone traveled on the left side of the road because it was the most effective option for swordsmen riding horseback, as the majority were right-handed and wanted to have their right arm and sword on the side nearest to their opponent. However in the late 1700s, people began using large wagons pulled by several horses. The drivers would sit on the last horse on the left side in order to keep their right arm free to whip the other horses and keep them moving. After a while, drivers preferred that other riders pass them on the left so that they could look down and make sure that they steered their wagon clear of the oncoming wagon’s wheels. Over time, many countries adopted this rule of the road and continue to drive on the right today.

How fast do cracks in glass travel?
Cracks in glass can grow at a speed of up to 1,500 metres per second.

Why do you never see baby pigeons?
Baby pigeons are kept hidden by their parents and fed a high-fat, high protein diet of milk for the first few weeks of their lives. They hardly take part in any physical activity and are fed so often that by the time they start to fly they are often bigger than their parents.

Why are hot dogs called hot dogs?
As the legend goes, the “hot dog” dates back to Frankfurt, Germany in 1852, where a butchers association named the sausage “frankfurter,” after their town. People thought the “frankfurter” resembled a dachshund, a long, thin dog, and started calling it the “dachshund sausage” instead. In 1906, Harry Mosley Stevens, who operated the New York Giant’s concession stands, decided to start selling the sausages and had his vendors promote it by yelling: “They’re red hot. Get your dachshund sausages while they’re red hot.” Ted Dorgan, a popular cartoonist, was a spectator at the stadium and thought this new sausage fad was something he could use for fodder. He created a cartoon of a vendor selling real dachshund dogs in a bun and yelling “Get your hot dogs!” From this, the name “hot dog” was born.

Can birds see glass?
No. Birds often see the reflections of trees or sky in glass and think they can fly through it, or they only see what is on the other side of the glass and do not realize that there is anything blocking them from the other side.

How do airplanes stay in the air?
Air that floats around the wings of an airplane causes lift. The air divides into two as it hits the wing: half of the air goes above the top and the other half goes under the wing. Since the top of the wing is rounded, the air above the wing has farther to travel than the air below the wing, which is flat. So, the air must move faster over the top than the bottom, decreasing the amount of air pressure above the wing. This, along with the fact that the air passing below the wing is deflected downwards, creates lift.

Where do fish go when the lake freezes?
When water freezes, whether it is a pond, lake or large body of water, only the surface freezes into ice. The fish remain in the water below the ice and continue doing the same thing as usual, just at a much slower pace. In the cool water, everything slows down, including their metabolism, heart rate and breathing. This semi-state of hibernation allows them to make it through the winter season.

How high can frogs leap?
All frogs are recognized as exceptional jumpers; however the height at which they can jump varies between each frog species. Generally among species, leap heights increase with increased size. Australian rocket frogs have been recorded leaping over 50 times their body length, resulting in two-metre jumps! Bullfrogs have been documented as jumping up to 1.5 metres. On average, frogs found in North America jump up to 0.6 metres.

Do plants grow in the winter?
Many plants continue to grow through the winter; however their growth slows down significantly due to cooler temperatures, shorter days and less exposure to sunlight.

What’s down here? (Question on top of sewer covers across Toronto)
The most common answer to this question would be sewage; however that is not always the case. Under these covers one could find numerous infrastructures, like pipes that supply heat to buildings; phone lines; water supply lines; or electricity transmission systems.

How high can birds fly?
Generally, birds fly below 150 metres to conserve energy. During migration, however, birds will fly up to 6,000 metres as they are travelling longer distances and want to avoid becoming dehydrated in the warmer air found closer to the ground.

Who’s this guy? (Question is posted on a statue in Queen’s Park, Toronto)
Sir John Alexander Macdonald was the first Prime Minister of Canada. Macdonald was in office for a period of 19 years, making him the second longest serving Prime Minister of Canada.

A selection of the ambient executions can be viewed at the links below.

“How high do birds fly?”
http://ourideas.org/creatives//FLD/ambient/CN_Tower.jpg

“Why are hot dogs called hot dogs?”
http://ourideas.org/creatives//FLD/ambient/Hot_Dog.jpg

“How high can frogs leap?”
http://ourideas.org/creatives/FLD/ambient/Wall.jpg

“What’s down here?”
http://ourideas.org/creatives/FLD/ambient/Whats_down_1.jpg

“What’s down here?” (close up)
http://ourideas.org/creatives/FLD/ambient/Whats_down_2.jpg

“Who’s this guy?”
http://ourideas.org/creatives/FLD/ambient/Who_is_this.jpg