Chilly images

You may think that warmer climes or warmer times are better for observing things. But take a second look the next time you're trudging through a wintry cityscape, suburb, or countryside. Do you see anything resembling these images? Look closer. How many of these cold-weather items can you identify? (Answers below.)

1. The origin of the name for this object has roots in the Cornish 'yeyn' (cold), the Welsh 'ia' (ice), and the Old Norse 'isjokull' (piece of ice).

2. This article of clothing has been useful for thousands of years, but the stringy bits date only to the late 16th century.

3. How does a long, long string become a comfy hemisphere? With patience, practice, a pattern ... and two sticks.

4. It didn't take Scandinavians long to figure out that there was a better way to go, in the snow. Now this is part of a cold-weather industry.

5. On the morning after a nighttime snowfall, you may be awakened by the noise this item makes.

6. They create nearly friction-free travel, if conditions are right. Sometimes, though, you need a little friction in order to steer or stop.

7. It often falls where you want it to, but a lot of times it falls right where you don't want it. That's when you need an item like this.

8. Have you noticed? A lot of them say 'YKK.' It was invented in the 1890s, took decades to perfect, and got its popular name from the noise it makes.

9. If you need to get a grip on something cold, it pays to get a grip on a pair of these.

10. It shows a lot of use, and that's no surprise in the Northeast. Do you remember 'Katy and the Big Snow,' by Virginia Lee Burton?

11. You can get a clearer view from this 'angle' if you've been caught outdoors during some winter weather.

ANSWERS

(1) an icicle, set against a red background; (2) a laced-up winter boot ('lachet ties,' early shoelaces, first appeared in England about 1570); (3) stitches in a knitted wool cap; (4) 'fish scales' on the bottom of a cross-country ski (the scales aid traction); (5) the working end of a snow shovel; (6) toe picks on a pair of figure skates; (7) a (truck-mounted) snow blower; (8) jacket zipper (rubbermaker B.F. Goodrich reportedly coined the term 'zipper' for a pair of rubber boots made with what was then known as a 'hookless fastener'); (9) a pair of gloves; (10) a snowplow; (11) an ice scraper for a car.

(c) Copyright 2001. The Christian Science Publishing Society