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Ames
"Al dente" means "to the tooth" in Italian and refers to the ideal consistency of pasta when cooked. Besides a more appealing taste, cooking pasta "al dente" provides inherent nutritional value.
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Waverly
Humans are able to safely eat some plants but not others.
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Sumner
Retention ponds are artificial structures designed to retain and treat contaminated stormwater runoff.
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Tipton
The Eastern Iowa tornado of March 2023 demolished a century farm. The rebuilding process included balancing several constraints.
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Pleasant Hill
After the leaves change color in the fall, they fall off and don't grow back right away.
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Pleasant Hill
As the seasons change, the sun sets earlier at night and rises later in the mornings.
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Pleasant Hill
When conditions are right both inside and outside, condensation is visible on a window.
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Pleasant Hill
The trees appeared white from snow, fog, temperatures or precipitation.
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Runnells
The trees were knocked down due to a tornado that went through the area.
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Mitchellville
The patterns of a swing in motion in various situations can be observed and measured.
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Des Moines
The same balloons can act differently in different settings.
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Des Moines
Multiple animal tracks are visible in the fresh, morning snow. There appear to be three sets of tracks that seem to come close to the backyard of a house.
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Des Moines
Releasing carbon dioxide from a canister will cause the canister to feel colder, even causing frost to form when all of the gas is expelled rapidly.
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Pleasant Hill
Animals such as birds and squirrels build nests in trees and bushes outdoors.
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Runnells
Evidence of weathering and erosion is visible through rock cutouts, changes in the shape of the land and water bodies, and sometimes the damage left behind.
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Roland
Weather forecasting can help us safely respond to severe winter weather.
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Sioux Center
Understanding butterfly characteristics can tell us even more about these creatures and the environments they live in.
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Bondurant
The corn appears to be ready for harvest due to the amount of water and sun it has received.
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Polk City
Crescent-shaped shadows can be seen during a 2017 eclipse.
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Ames
The angle and distance between bags boards can impact how the game is played.
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Bondurant
It's possible to see both the sun and the moon during the day.
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Northeast
Some trees become full of leaves in the spring and summer, and during the fall, the leaves change colors and fall from the trees.
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Pleasant Hill
Watching the weather forecasts and having materials necessary for severe weather helps to predict and prepare for these events.
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Madison County
The amount of daylight we have changes as the months go by
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Pleasant Hill
Stink bugs tend to show up in homes during the fall and winter.
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Schaller
Large wind turbines surround many small farming communities in Iowa.
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Eddyville
Eddyville Sand Dunes Prairie is a patchwork of wind-blown sand, glacial till, associated wetlands, and woodlands, and the resulting biodiversity there is truly unique.
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