Ch2 - Horse
Horses are well-liked animals, valued highly for their beauty, elegance of movement, their hard work and stamina.
These beautiful creatures were first domesticated around 3,5 thousand years B.C. on the territory of today’s Kazakhstan.
Many different horse breeds exist, and we can generally divide them into two categories: hot-blooded and cold-blooded. They differ in strength, temperament, and build. Because of this diversity, they help people in various areas.
Hot-blooded horses are very temperamental and of slim build. They are extremely agile and as such, they are perfect for various sports and racing.
Arabian horses are regarded as the noblest breed among the hot-blooded. They are also considered the oldest breed in the whole world.
Arabian horses have a lot of stamina and are quick in gallop. Moreover, they are very temperamental, but at the same time highly intelligent and affectionate towards humans.
Because of their beauty, Arabian horses are held in high esteem. Interestingly, Poland is famous for breeding them.
Cold-blooded horses are much less temperamental. They are also stronger and sturdier: one horse weighs about 1 tonne. They descended from huge and slow forest horses that dwelled in Northern Europe before the Ice Age. In the Middle Ages, knights used them for riding. Nowadays, they are mainly used for transporting goods and agricultural work.
Cold-blooded horses have thick manes, tails and legs covered in thick fur. They are sometimes called „gentle giants” because of their calm, patient personality.
Nonetheless, the title of the strongest horse in the world belongs to the Shetland Pony. In the past, Shetland Ponies were mainly used as draft horses, e.g. for coal transportation. This exhausting work had a negative influence on their breed and cut down its numbers. Today, their work is reduced to entertainment. They show great skill in jumping events, in circuses or in equine assisted therapy.
Ponies are small horses, which at first glance may seem slow and sluggish. They are, however, very temperamental and can even be mischievous or obnoxious. They share a lot of traits with the wild horses.
Horses are regarded as one of the most beautiful animals in the whole world. They are evaluated not only on their build, but also coat color.
Overall, horses can have various coat colors, such as chestnut – with reddish-to-brown coat, mane and tail the same color; bay – reddish brown body color with black mane and tail; palomino – gold coat, white mane and tail; true black – when the coat, tail and mane are all black; and many, many more.
Nowadays in Europe and North America, horses are bred mainly for sports and leisure activities. Still, their popularity does not drop. Polo and hunting belong to very old equestrian sports, but new, more sophisticated disciplines are being developed all the time.
Different types of horse racing, such as flat racing, steeple chasing or harness racing, are also extremely popular. There is even a well-known discipline inspired by American cowboys who had to adapt their riding style to the hard work of cattle farming.
Horses also managed to slip into the police force. The most famous mounted police is the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Horses are a great help in crowd control, they can also travel to places where other vehicles fail.
Nowadays, there is only one species of wild horses left: Przewalski’s horses, also known as Dzungarian horses. They were named after a Russian explorer, Nikolay Przhevalsky, whose research delivered exhaustive data on these animals. Przewalski’s horses are officially considered extinct in the wild; the last few specimens live in Mongolia and China. Fortunately, a program to reintroduce them to their natural habitat started in 1990. Its effects are slow but promising in some regions.
Build
To build this model, you will need LEGO Education WeDo 2.0
Explore
This construction represents a horse galloping ahead.
The model relies on a crank gear to make the horse move forwards and backwards.
1. The motor placed behind the horse is propelling the mechanism responsible for moving the horse.
2. The hub delivers power to the motor and controls it, all thanks to the batteries inside. Commands are wirelessly transmitted from a program created on another device.
1. The horse model is placed on a vertical axle and can be easily taken off, if needed.
2. The base is slightly tilting forwards and backwards together with the axle and the horse.
The rack gear changes the motor’s circular motion (in one direction) into the base’s swinging motion (in two directions).
1. The transmission gear next to the motor makes the speed of rotation four times slower. The pin near the big cogwheel’s edge serves as a crank bolt, which is connected with the lime beam.
2. On the other side of the beam you can see a mechanism working as a lever.
3. Each tilt of the green beam makes the horse’s base tilt as well.
The horse’s model contains some interesting elements.
1. The head is connected with the torso by means of a brick with ball joint, so you can turn it any way you want. The rack gear imitates the horse’s mane.
2. Its legs are freely attached on pins. While moving, the legs will swing on its own and it will seem like the horse is tapping its hooves.
Program
Start programming the horse model by placing the Start Block.
